Data demand drives Globe Q3 profit higher

GLOBE Telecom, Inc. reported a 17% rise in profits in the third quarter, driven by strong growth in all its data-related products and services.

The Ayala-led telecommunications giant posted an attributable net income of P5.63 billion in the July to September period, up 17% from the P4.81 billion it recorded in the same period last year.

Year to date, Globe’s attributable net income was 20% higher at P17.68 billion.

Operating revenues jumped 13% to P41.89 billion in the third quarter, bringing the nine-month tally to P123.41 billion, up 11% year on year.

Consolidated service revenues increased 14% to P37.73 billion in the July to September period, pushing the ninemonth total to P110.6 billion — 13% higher year on year.

Globe noted that data now accounts for 70% of service revenues, with 47% from mobile data, 14% from home broadband and 9% from corporate data.

For its mobile business, Globe generated P83 billion in revenues in the January to September period, 13% higher than the previous year. Globe said mobile revenues remained the top contributor accounting for 75% of the total service revenues led by the company’s prepaid brands.

Globe’s total mobile subscribers stood at 97.36 million as of end September, up 5% from the previous quarter. Of this, Globe Prepaid and TM subscribers stood at 94.69 million, while Globe Postpaid added 2.67 million.

For home broadband, revenues surged 19% to P16 billion during the nine-month period, “given the continued subscriber base expansion and rising demand for faster internet connectivity.”

Corporate data revenues grew 12% to P9.5 billion, while fixed-line voice revenues dropped 9% to P668 million.

Globe said operating expenses, including subsidy, increased by 8% to P52.8 billion in the nine-month period.

The telecommunications giant said it spent nearly P32 billion as of the first nine months of the year “to enhance its networks data capacities and capabilities.”

Globe also said it will “continue to reinvest in the network, which is currently on track to reach capital expenditure commitments of $1.2 billion by the end of 2019.”

It expects cash capital expenditures to end the year at around $900 million.

“We are happy that the sustained topline and profit growths we have achieved over the past three quarters have positioned us well as we head into the fourth quarter. We are likewise excited that, as we gear up for the roll out of our At Home Air Fiber 5G service, we are shaping the future of the nation and solidifying our leadership role in providing fast and reliable internet in the markets we serve,” Globe Telecom President and Chief Executive Officer Ernest L. Cu said in a statement.

Shares in Globe rose 2.52% to P1,870 each on Thursday. —