Net profit for the quarter fell from Rs 759 crore in the January-March period, due to muted average revenue per user (ARPU) growth and a sharp slowdown in data subscriber adds during the Covid second wave. The telco had posted a loss of Rs 15,933 crore a year ago.
Consolidated quarterly revenue rose 15 per cent on year to Rs26,854 crore.
Airtel’s ARPU rose Rs 146 from Rs145 in the March quarter.
“India is now recovering from the devastating second wave of Covid-19…Our consolidated revenues at Rs26,854 crores grew by 1106 crores over the last quarter, representing sequential growth of 4.3 percent while EBITDA margins improved from 48.9 per cent to 49.1 per cent,” Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, India & South Asia, said in a statement on Tuesday.
He said that the telco’s wireless revenue was hurt by the Covid lockdown-induced slowdown in terms of device shipments and a financial squeeze at the lower end of the market.
Still, “We added about 5.1 million 4G customers during the quarter and our enterprise business in India continued to deliver strongly. Our Homes business grew by just about 13 percent over last year and added 285K customers in the quarter, the highest ever. We continue to invest in the best of emerging technologies, including networks and digital capabilities,” Vittal added.
