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MANAMA: Batelco announced net profit attributable to equity holders of the company for Q3-2021 of BD15.7 million ($41.6m), a 9 per cent increase from BD14.4m ($38.2m) for the corresponding quarter of 2020.
Likewise, net profit attributable to equity holders of the company for the first nine months of 2021 of BD53.2m ($141.1m) has increased by 6pc from BD50.3m ($133.4m) for the corresponding period in 2020.
The increase in net profit is mainly attributable to steady increases in revenues for the first nine months of the year.
Earnings per share (EPS) are 9.5 fils for the third quarter of 2021 compared to 8.7 fils in Q3 2020 resulting in an EPS of 32.2 fils for the period compared to an EPS of 30.4 for the same period in 2020.
Total comprehensive income attributable to equity holders in Q3 2021 was reported at BD13.4m, a 25pc decrease from BD17.8m in the third quarter of 2020 mainly due to foreign currency translation differences.
However, total comprehensive income attributable to equity holders of the company for the first nine months of 2021 is up by 41pc from BD43m in 2020 to BD60.6m in 2021.
Revenues for the third quarter in 2021 of BD98.2m increased by 2pc compared to BD95.9m in Q3 2020.
Similarly, revenues for the first nine months of 2021 were BD296.4m, an increase of 4pc when compared to BD285.7m of revenues for the same period in 2020.
The increase in revenues is mainly due to YoY increases in fixed broadband, adjacent services and wholesale revenues of 15pc, 15pc and 3pc respectively.
Operating profit for Q3-2021 is up by 8pc to BD21.8m from BD20.2m in Q3 2020; while year-on-year operating profits increased by 5pc from BD67.6m in 2020 to BD71m in 2021.
EBITDA stands at BD40.6m in Q3 2021 compared to BD38.2m in Q3 2020, an increase of 6pc.
EBITDA increased by 5pc from BD120.1m for the first nine months of 2020 to BD126m in 2021, with a EBITDA margin of 43pc.
Batelco’s balance sheet remains strong with total equity attributable to equity holders of the company of BD478.6m as of end-September 2021, 1pc higher than BD473.2m reported as of end-2020.
Total assets of BD999.1m as of end-September 2021 have increased by 1pc compared to total assets of BD992.2m as of end-2020.
Net assets at BD517.4m as of end-September 2021 are 1pc higher than BD512.1m as of end-2020.
The company’s cash and bank balances are BD196.1m, which reflects the 2021 interim dividend of 13.5 fils per share paid in August 2021.
Batelco chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa announced the financial results following a meeting of the board of directors yesterday.
“The board of directors is pleased with the financial results for the first nine months of 2021, with the positive trend set in Q1 and Q2 continuing for the third quarter. In line with the results and the Board’s commitment to deliver the best returns for shareholders, it’s good to also see an increase in EPS, compared to the first nine months of 2020,” he said.
“Batelco continues with its commitment to the community and sustainability and realising the growing importance of sustainability recently established an ESG function to adopt internationally recognised standards across various areas including sustainable energy. As part of this, Batelco Solar Park has recently been completed and commissioned and is already generating solar energy to power the company’s data centre at Ras Abu Jarjoor. This initiative which is phase one of a bigger plan supports our goal of becoming a sustainable corporation in the future,” Shaikh Abdulla added.
Commenting on the performance, Batelco chief executive Mikkel Vinter said: “I’m happy that we have maintained the momentum set in the first six months of 2021 to deliver sound financial results, with a year-on-year increase of 15pc respectively in fixed broadband and adjacent services and 3pc increase in wholesale revenues contributing positively to this.
“The evolution or our mobile network is ongoing, and to ensure delivery of reliable mobile connectivity solutions, including 5G for new cities and developments, Batelco is extending its reach and coverage to major housing developments and the private sector across Bahrain. Furthermore, to facilitate the adoption of 5G services, Batelco ensures the availability of the latest 5G devices, such as the new Apple devices which were recently launched for Batelco’s customers.”
“As part of the ongoing transformation of Batelco’s mobile network, the phase out of the 2G service, which had been in place for over 27 years, is almost complete, with the capacity being used reallocated to support the growth of 3G, 4G and 5G networks, to meet the ever-growing demand for better and wider mobile data services.”
“Digitisation is playing a major role in how organisations work and transform and to provide businesses with expertise in ICT, digital and cloud solutions and cyber security, Batelco has established an end-to-end digital systems integrator arm to address the changing dynamics of the enterprise sector. Cloud transformation is at the centre of these plans in line with Bahrain’s cloud first policy,” Mr Vinter explained.
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