All three Bharti group companies outperformed in CY25 but the biggest gain came from Bharti Airtel, the flagship.
Airtel CEO said, the 5G ecosystem is yet to develop in India and the prices are very high. Telecom companies including Vodafone Idea (VI) and Reliance Jio have also said that the current prices are exorbitant.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Tuesday posted a 49.2 per cent jump in its consolidated net profit to Rs 3,005.6 crore for the January-March quarter of 2022-23 on the back of new 4G customers and strong growth in average revenue per user (ARPU). The company had recorded a net profit of Rs 2,007.8 crore in the same period a year ago. Bharti Airtel's consolidated revenue from operations grew by 14.31 per cent to Rs 36,009 crore during the reported quarter from Rs 31,500.3 crore in the March 2022 quarter.
There have been several positive signals in Bharti Airtel with revenue market share (RMS) growth, better visibility of profits from Africa, and enough free cash flow to pursue deleveraging. Airtel's 4G and 5G data subscriber net additions were 5.6 million in Q1FY24, and 24.5 million in the last 12 months. Airtel currently has 230 million data subscribers on 4G/5G, which is about 70 per cent penetration of its base of 339 million subscribers.
The company, which on March 11 raised $1 billion through a 10-year bond issue, raised $500 million through senior notes.
Indian benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty experienced a decline due to renewed geopolitical concerns in the Strait of Hormuz, a strained US-Iran ceasefire, and the rupee hitting a record low against the US dollar.
Indian stock markets saw a significant rebound, with the Sensex jumping nearly 790 points, primarily fuelled by strong buying interest in telecom, pharma, and private banking shares, despite a volatile trading session and a weakening rupee.
Reasserting its emotional connect with consumers -- something that is at the core of its brand philosophy --, Bharti Airtel last week rolled out a new plan called Special 5 for all its 100 million mobile phone customers.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Tuesday reported a 2.8 per cent decline in its consolidated net profit to Rs 830 crore for the third quarter ended December 2021. The company had recorded a net profit of Rs 854 crore in the same period a year ago. Consolidated revenue increased by 12.6 per cent to Rs 29,867 crore, from Rs 26,518 crore in the December 2020 quarter.
Indian stock markets are expected to remain highly sensitive to geopolitical developments, particularly the US-Iran situation, and crude oil prices this week, with analysts also highlighting the influence of the rupee-dollar trend, foreign investor activity, and upcoming inflation data.
The board of Bharti Airtel approved the rights issue to raise up to Rs 25,000 crore through the issuance of fully paid up shares at a price of Rs 220 per share and to raise an additional Rs 7,000 crore via the foreign currency perpetual bond issue.
The company said in a statement on Monday 'it has retired equivalent debt from the proceeds (Rs 6,796 crore) of the preferential allotment in June 2013 of 5 per cent equity shares in Bharti Airtel at the rate of Rs 340 per share to Qatar Foundation Endowment'.
It is introducing a new business model to manage fixed line and DSL broadband networks.
The MTN Group, the largest mobile operator in sub-Saharan Africa, might seek a 'non-compete agreement' with Bharti Airtel, India's largest private telecom company, to bar it from entering the 21-odd markets in which the Johannesburg-listed company operates, banking sources said.
Indian stock market benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, experienced declines in early trade due to escalating tensions between the US and Iran, which led to a surge in crude oil prices and weak global equity trends.
From its lows this month, the stock of Bharti Airtel is up 14 per cent. The gains for the telco have come on the back of expectations that market share consolidation, tariff hike and lower capex should boost margins and profits. While the company is a key player in the Indian market, it also has a leadership position in major markets of Africa.
Bharti Airtel reported a 47 per cent year-on-year rise in consolidated revenues at Rs 15,215 crore (Rs 152.15 billion) in the September quarter.
Kotak Mahindra Bank to have a 19.9% stake in the proposed banking venture.
India's total telephone subscriber base reached 1,321.31 million by the end of February 2026, marking a 0.56 per cent monthly growth, primarily fuelled by a significant surge in broadband adoption.
Total network minutes rise 5% q-o-q but revenue per minute down 1.9%
Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel has now become India's biggest music company, overtaking the industry leader Saregama, on the back of its music-related value-added mobile services, a top executive has said.
Indian benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty experienced a significant slump, with the Sensex tumbling 719.08 points, driven by escalating West Asian tensions, a sharp rise in crude oil prices, and a global sell-off in technology stocks.
ontinuing its acquisition spree in the international market, Bharti Airtel on Wednesday said the company will acquire 100 per cent stake in Telecom Seychelles for $62 million (about Rs 288 crore).
Bharti Airtel said it might look at diluting some of its equity either at Bharti Airtel or at its tower subsidiary as one of the options to fund the $10.7-billion acquisition of African assets of Zain Telecom.
It would not produce any content, but market and cater to an array of users like animation and gaming firms, news channels, cinemas and banking institutions.
Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Friday expressed concern over the manner in which penalties are being imposed for different violations of licence terms and conditions, and said operators have collectively paid over Rs 1,000 crore (Rs 10 billion) so far to the government as fines.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Tuesday reported a 91.5 per cent year-on-year rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,588 crore for the three months ended December 2022, helped by competitive growth across businesses. Total revenue rose nearly 20 per cent to Rs 35,804 crore in the third quarter of the current financial year "backed by strong and consistent performance delivery across the portfolio", the company said in a statement. Its consolidated net income (after exceptional items) stood at Rs 1,588 crore for the just ended quarter, translating into an increase of 91.5 per cent year-on-year.
Plans to form JV for its data centre business
With competitive pressures increasing at home, Bharti is making a third attempt to gain a foothold in the African market.
Indian benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty climbed in early trade, driven by a significant drop in crude oil prices following reports of a potential 60-day ceasefire extension between the US and Iran, coupled with positive global market trends and buying in IT stocks.
An internal committee of Department of Telecom had alleged that Bharti Airtel had continued to route national and international calls as local calls under a scheme till 2005 despite being told to stop it in 2003.
Bharti Airtel recently acquired a 100 per cent stake in Wireless Business Services, a company founded by US chipmaker Qualcomm. Subsequent to the acquisition, the company was renamed Airtel Broadband Services.
Bharti Airtel has quietly narrowed its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) market share gap with Reliance Jio, the country's largest player in the game, in the last three years. Despite Jio's aggressive entry into 4G and now into 5G, Airtel's gap with Jio, which was 6.4 percentage points in Q1 of FY21 and went up to 7.2 percentage points in Q1 of FY22, has fallen to only 4.4 percentage points in Q1 of FY24. Currently, Reliance Jio's AGR market share is 41.6 per cent while Airtel's is at 37.2 per cent.
Adani Group Director Jeet Adani and Bharti Enterprises Vice Chairman Rakesh Bharti Mittal highlighted the importance of infrastructure, energy, and connectivity in shaping India's AI ecosystem, emphasising Visakhapatnam's potential as a major digital gateway.
Domestic cellular major Bharti Airtel on Friday entered into the elite league of corporate entities with a market value of over Rs 1 trillion, joining ranks with giants like Reliance Industries, Infosys, ONGC, NTPC and TCS.
The government on Tuesday said it has not received any application for 2G spectrum auction except that of Sistema Shyam Teleservices that will bid for CDMA spectrum.
On the back of this, leading GSM incumbent Bharti Airtel's shares opened on a bullish note and then gained further ground and touched an early high of Rs 334.55 on the BSE, higher by 8.96 per cent from its previous closing price.
Shareholder payouts by India Inc, including dividends and buybacks, increased by 2.2 per cent year-on-year in FY26 to $5.06 trillion, but this growth lagged the 18.8 per cent rise in reported net profit for the third consecutive year, leading to the lowest dividend payout ratio in 12 years.
Indian benchmark equity indices, Sensex and Nifty, closed marginally higher, breaking a four-day losing streak, despite elevated crude oil prices and ongoing geopolitical uncertainties. The market saw a temporary pause in panic selling, though cautious sentiment persists.
