Singtel H1 net profit falls 55% to S$1.54 billion on lack of divestment gains; underlying profit up 10%

[SINGAPORE] Telecommunications giant Singtel on Friday (Nov 13) posted a 55 per cent decline in net profit to S$1.54 billion for the first half-year ended September, from S$3.4 billion in the year-ago period.

This was mainly due to the absence of S$2.21 billion in net exceptional gains recorded a year earlier from the partial sale of its stake in Airtel and the Intouch-Gulf Energy merger.

Excluding exceptional items, underlying net profit rose 10 per cent to S$1.49 billion, from S$1.35 billion a year earlier.

The increase was driven by stronger performances at NCS, Digital InfraCo and Optus, as well as higher contributions from regional associates Airtel and AIS.

The group’s operating revenue rose 6 per cent to S$7.29 billion in H1, from S$6.91 billion in the previous year.

In constant currency terms, revenue would have increased 1.4 per cent, while underlying net profit would have grown 16 per cent, Singtel said.

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The board approved an interim dividend of S$0.09 per share, comprising a core dividend of S$0.071 and a value realisation dividend of S$0.019. This is 10 per cent higher than the S$0.082 per share declared a year earlier.

The group also raised its full-year operating company earnings before interest and tax (OpCo Ebit) growth guidance to between mid and high single digits, from its previous forecast of mid-single-digit growth.

Singtel group chief executive Yuen Kuan Moon said the stronger operating performance reflected double-digit Ebit growth at NCS, Digital InfraCo and Optus, alongside robust contributions from regional associates.

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“We are raising our full-year guidance on the back of this results momentum,” he said.

Shares of Singtel closed S$0.01 or 0.2 per cent higher at S$4.15 on Thursday.