StarHub Q1 net profit up 26% to S$37.5 million on higher service revenue

MAINBOARD-LISTED telco StarHub posted a 26 per cent rise in net profit to S$37.5 million for the first quarter ended Mar 31, from S$29.7 million a year ago.

This was due mainly to higher service revenue, which grew 11 per cent year on year and was lifted by the consolidation of MyRepublic broadband, the company said in a business update on Thursday (May 11) evening.

Revenue for Q1 was up 8.7 per cent to S$557.4 million, from S$512.7 million a year earlier.

All service segments reported growth in the first quarter. Mobile revenue grew 13.5 per cent to S$152.1 million; broadband revenue was up 20.4 per cent to S$62 million; entertainment revenue rose 21 per cent to S$57.1 million; and enterprise revenue nudged up 3.9 per cent to S$190.4 million.

Service earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) was up 2.7 per cent to S$103.4 million from S$100.7 million in the preceding year-ago period.

The company attributed topline growth to healthy operating metrics: Average revenue per user (ARPU), for example, grew year on year across most segments, despite sustained market competition.

In the near term, StarHub will consolidate its Infinity Play products into an all-in-one app, to be released in phases across FY2023.

This will enable the company to leverage “enhanced targeting, improved analytics and new marketing automation to digitalise its operating model, accelerate time-to-market and tap data insights for smarter and more agile decision-making”.

The company’s enterprise business has already made headway positioning itself as a smart-city service provider, having secured a multi-year network servicing contract awarded by JTC for the Punggol Digital District.

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The Punggol Digital District will “set the benchmark for smart and sustainable business districts in Singapore, and this is congruent with StarHub’s vision to provide smart, safe and sustainable solutions for enterprises”, it said.

Shares of StarHub closed flat at S$1.01 on Thursday, before the results were announced.