Shares at PLDT ended at ₱1,164 on Thursday, up by 6.8 percent from the previous day’s rate.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 8) — PLDT Inc. recorded stronger profits in the first half as it saw mobile data usage double from a year ago.
The listed telecommunications firm booked net income of ₱12.2 billion from January to June, up 4 percent from profits a year ago. This developed on the back of a 6 percent climb in total service revenues that reached ₱76.7 billion, a five-year high.
On the other hand, PLDT has so far spent ₱32.7 billion on capital investments to beef up their fiber broadband network, which is barely half the ₱78.4 billion outlay programmed for the year, the company said in a report to the Philippine Stock Exchange.
Core income stood at ₱13.2 billion, half the ₱26.4 billion target for the full year. PLDT chairman and chief executive officer Manuel Pangilinan said he is confident that the core income goal will be attained.
Mobile and broadband internet led PLDT’s revenue streams to hit ₱49.6 billion, which grew by a fifth compared to a year ago, the company said. This segment accounted for 69 percent of total service revenues, as consumption more than doubled to hit 670 petabytes.
The consumer wireless segment soared 20 percent to ₱34.4 billion. PLDT said robust subscriber growth drove the expansion, especially among users who have shifted to using LTE and 4G mobile connections. Data usage likewise surged during the period as more smartphone users went online for videos and games.
PLDT’s mobile networks Smart, TNT, and Sun reported a combinied 66.8 million subscribers as of end-June, after acquiring 8.7 million new subscribers during the period.
“Our thrust for the balance of 2019 is to bring these compelling services to low- and non-data users, whom we are targeting to move up to LTE SIMs and devices so they can start experiencing our superior LTE network service,” said Oscar Reyes, Jr., PLDT senior vice president for Consumer Business.
The company also announced the appointment of PLDT’s Chief Revenue Officer Alfredo Panlilio as president of Smart Communications effective today. Previously, he was vice president of customer retail services at the Manila Electric Company, another utility firm owned under the MVP Group.
Meanwhile, sales of PLDT Home saw a modest 2 percent climb, referring to residential telephone and internet lines. The Pangilinan-led firm said this was due to disruptions in installation and repair works last year.
PLDT’s business customers realized ₱19.4 billion revenues during the first six months, drawn from providing services for data centers, cloud, and cyber security.
The telco provider said they are gearing up for the launch of 5G network services by the “first half of 2020.” This is also around the time when Dito Telecommunity is set to roll out mobile services as the third major player in the local telecommunications market.
PLDT shareholders are entitled to dividends at ₱36 per share to be settled September 10, it added.
READ: Dito’s entry may hurt 40% of PLDT revenues, credit rater says
