Vodafone Idea Q4 Results: Loss Narrows, Revenue Rises On Tariff Hikes

Vodafone Idea Ltd.'s fourth-quarter profit narrowed and revenue rose aided by tariff hikes.

The telecom company reported a net loss of Rs 6,563.1 crore in the quarter ended March compared with a loss of Rs 7,231 crore in the prior three months, according to its exchange filing. Analysts tracked by Bloomberg had pegged the loss at Rs 6,737.6 crore.

Vodafone Idea Q4 Highlights (Consolidated, QoQ)

• Revenue grew 5.37% to Rs 10,239.5 crore against the estimated Rs 10,372.8 crore.

• Operating profit increased 38.32% to Rs 4,649 crore.

• Ebitda margin widened to 45.4% from 39.28% as of December.

The average revenue per user of the telecom service operator stood at Rs 124, 7.5% higher sequentially, aided by the tariff hikes in November.

Meanwhile, the subscriber base declined to 24.38 crore from 24.72 crore in December. The company attributed that to the increase in pricing.

The total gross debt, excluding lease liabilities, as of March 31 stood at Rs 1,97,880 crore, comprising deferred spectrum payment obligations of Rs 1,13,860 crore and AGR liability of Rs 65,950 crore. It also includes government dues and debt from banks and financial institutions worth Rs 18,070 crore.

The carrier’s net debt stood at Rs 1,96,420 crore as on March 31. The company had agreed to convert interest on deferred spectrum payments and statutory dues into equity, giving the government a nearly 36% stake under the rescue plan.

The company's net worth stood at Rs 61,964.8 crore as on March 31. It said that its ability to stay as a going concern depends on raising additional funds from lenders and generating cash flow from operations as it has already exhausted the option of moratorium on statutory dues and raised funds from promoters.