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Al Suwaidi and Julfar ...firm strenghtens its position.

Etisalat Q2 profits fall 40pc to $408m

ABU DHABI, July 28, 2015

Abu Dhabi-listed Etisalat reported a 40 per cent fall in second-quarter net profit on Tuesday that it blamed on its Saudi Arabia affiliate Mobily and foreign exchange losses.

Etisalat, which operates in about 19 countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, made a net profit of Dh1.5 billion ($408.4 million) in the three months to June 30, the company said in a statement.

The company did not provide a year-earlier figure, but its previous financial statements showed the company made a profit of Dh2.51 billion in the second quarter of 2014.

Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast the Gulf's No 2 telecoms operator by market value would post a quarterly profit of Dh2.16 billion.

Saudi Arabia's Mobily, in which Etisalat owns a 27.5 per cent stake, has been embroiled in an accounting scandal that has led the kingdom's No 2 operator to restate much of its earnings from 2013 onwards.

In June, Etisalat warned Mobily's latest restatement would cut its 2015 net profit by Dh204 million.

The UAE's former monopoly generated second quarter revenue of Dh13.3 billion, up about 6 per cent from a year earlier.

The group's aggregate subscriber base reached 168 million subscribers, it said.

Consolidated EBITDA for the second quarter totaled Dh6.8 billion, representing an increase of 17 per cent year on year, resulting in EBITDA margin of 51 per cent.

The Board of Directors has approved an interim dividend distribution for the six months period ended June 30, 2015 at the rate of 40 fils per share representing an increase of 14 per cent year on year.

Eissa Al Suwaidi, Etisalat Group chairman, said: “Etisalat continues to strengthen its position as a leading operator in emerging markets despite the challenges in some of our operating markets. This is an indicator of the company’s strong foundations and we remain committed to our long-term vision for continued success.
 
“I want to praise the decision of the Federal Government to allow institutional and foreign ownership of Etisalat’s equity as this will have a positive impact both on Etisalat’s shareholders and Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange and I want to thank the wise leadership for supporting the telecommunications sector.”

Ahmad Julfar, group chief executive officer, said: “Etisalat continues to deliver long-term value to its shareholders and customers across the markets it operates in. This value is being delivered through our ability to continually innovate; a key determinant to delivering what our shareholders and customers aspire to.”
He added: “This quarter’s 6% increase in revenue is an indicator that Etisalat’s long-term strategy for sustainable growth in our markets is the right approach, despite the decline in profit in Quarter 2, which is due to higher depreciation and amortization charges, the impact of Mobily’s additional provision for accounts receivables, higher net finance costs and incurring forex losses during the period against forex gains in the same period last year.”  - Reuters and TradeArabia News Service




Tags: UAE | Etisalat | Telecom |

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