Sri Lanka’s Dialog Axiata net down 58-pct in December quarter

Feb 17, 2016 (LBO) – Profits at Sri Lanka’s Dialog Axiata group, which has interests in mobile, fixed and pay television, declined 58 percent to 620 million rupees from a year earlier in the December 2015 quarter, interim accounts showed.



Revenues grew 16 percent to 20 billion rupees in the December quarter from a year earlier, direct costs rose 12 percent to 10.

9 billion rupees and gross profits rose 21 percent to 9.1 billion rupees. Net finance cost of the group has jumped close to two folds in the December quarter to 572 million rupees. The group reported earnings of 8 cents per share for the quarter compared with 18 cents per share a year ago.

In the year to December profits of the group has declined 15 percent to 5.

2 billion rupees from a year earlier, interim accounts showed.

At an entity level, Dialog Axiata featuring the mobile, international and tele-Infrastructure segments of the group portfolio contributed a major share of group revenue of 84 percent.



On the back of its Mobile customer base of over 10.

8 million subscribers, Company revenue grew by 9 percent year on year to be recorded at 62.9 billion rupees. Dialog Television, the digital pay television business of the group continued its positive growth momentum, recording a revenue growth of 23 percent year on year to reach 5.8 billion rupees in 2015. DTV’s pay TV customer base was recorded at 650,000 subscriptions as at the end of December 2015.



Dialog Broadband Networks featuring the group’s fixed telecommunications and broadband business recorded revenue of 7.3 billion rupees, representing an increase of 19 percent year on year.



Group capital expenditure for in 2015 was recorded at 19.6 billion rupees. The company said capital expenditure was directed in the main towards investments in high speed broadband infrastructure alongside the extension of the group’s Optical Fibre Network, and investments associated with the final phase of the Bay of Bengal Gateway Sub-Marine Cable project.

Dialog Axiata has proposed a cash dividend of 32 cents per share totaling to 2.

6 billion rupees subjected to necessary approvals.