SLT Group rings healthy 28.6% growth in profits to Rs. 4.8 b

Sri Lanka Telecom Plc announced yesterday a healthy 28.6% growth in Group net profit to Rs. 4.8 billion and a revenue increase of 8.5% to Rs. 73.8 billion, driven by both the Fixed ICT and Mobile segments. 

SLT said the decision to make continuous investments in data and broadband-related products, providing superior experience in quality and speed at competitive rates, is reflected in the revenue increase. 

Group operating costs rose by 11.7% as a result of the increased government tax levies, ITL (International Telecommunications Levy) rate by $ 0.03 and due to the damages caused to equipment and infrastructure by floods affecting several provinces. Despite the cost escalations, the group reported an EBITDA of Rs. 20.2 billion during the year, with a year-on-year growth of 1%. The group EBITDA margin was reported at 27.4%. Along with the improvements in revenue growth, the lower impact of foreign exchange rate variations has positively impacted the Net Profit growth of the group.

Group Chairman Kumarasinghe Sirisena was of the view that the strategic and business decisions that are being made focusing on the group perception as a whole and aligning the group’s goals with that of the Government’s vision to become an ICT-enabled country will further strengthen and drive the growth of the group in the coming year.

The holding company, Sri Lanka Telecom Plc, reported a Net Profit of Rs. 1.7 billion during 2016, maintaining the same level as last year. Company revenue was reported at Rs. 43.1 billion with a 6.3% increase in comparison to the previous year. 

SLT Group Chief Executive Officer Dileepa Wijesundera noted that despite various challenges in the industry and the market, each individual within the group was able to make a tremendous contribution and thus achieve sustainable growth overall. 

Further, the group is now geared to offer an even better experience to its customers in 2017 with an extensive product portfolio including OTT and IoT based on the super-fast fiber optic network.