Telenor Backs Fiscal Year Guidance After 1Q Net Profit Beat

By Dominic Chopping

Norwegian telecom provider Telenor ASA (TEL.OS) posted a forecast-beating first-quarter net profit on Tuesday and backed its full-year guidance.

Telenor posted net profit for the period of 3.83 billion Norwegian kroner ($441.8 million) from NOK4.99 billion in the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose to NOK27.64 billion from NOK27.15 billion, while its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization margin slipped to 40.3% from 41.8%.

Analysts polled by FactSet had expected net profit of NOK3.36 billion and revenue of NOK27.5 billion.

Telenor said it added 2.3 million new mobile subscribers to its networks during the quarter. It added 1.3 million in Bangladesh and 700,000 in Pakistan, partly offsetting a subscription loss of 500,000 in Thailand and 400,000 in Malaysia. Total mobile subscriptions were 176 million.

Telenor still expects organic subscription and traffic growth in 2019, excluding its Thai operation, of 0% to 2%, and organic Ebitda growth of 1%-3%. Capital expenditure excluding spectrum licenses is still seen at NOK16 billion to NOK17 billion.

Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com; @domchopping @WSJNordics

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

April 30, 2019 02:20 ET (06:20 GMT)

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