Vodafone India financial year 2013 revenue stands at £4.32 bn, up 1.4 percent

Vodafone India service revenue for 2013 grew by 1.4 percent to reach £4.32 billion.

This was driven by strong growth in mobile voice minutes and data revenue, partially offset by the impact of regulatory changes. Average customer growth slowed in Q4, as Q3 regulatory changes affecting subscriber verification continued to impact gross additions, however customer acquisition costs remained low.

For the year as a whole, growth was negatively impacted by the introduction of new consumer protection regulations on the charging of access fees and the marketing of integrated tariffs and value-added services. However, in Q4 the customer base returned to growth and usage increased. Data revenue grew by 19.8 percent driven by increased data customers and higher smartphone penetration.

On 31st March, 2013 active data customers totaled 37.3 million including approximately 3.3 million 3G data customers.

There was a lower rate of growth at Indus Towers, our network infrastructure joint venture, with a slow down in tenancies from smaller entrants, some operators exiting sites following license cancellations and a change in the pricing structure for some existing customers in the first half of the year.

EBITDA grew by 24 percent, with a 3.3 percentage point increase in EBITDA margin, driven by the higher revenue, operating cost efficiencies and the impact of lower customer acquisition costs, partially offset by inflationary pressure.

Vodafone Group revenue for 2013 was down by 4.2 percent to reach £44.4 billion. Even Q4 revenue was down by 4.2 percent whereas full year organic service revenue decline by 1.9 percent. EBITDA was down by 3.1 percent at £13.3 billion whereas organic EBITDA margin down was down by 0.1 percentage points excluding restructuring costs.

Performance was strong in our emerging markets operations, with continued good growth in revenue and improving margins. However, the macroeconomic environment in Southern Europe has been very challenging, and European regulation continues to depress returns in the industry, rather than incentivise investment. Verizon Wireless, our 45 percent owned associate in the US, continued to achieve strong growth in revenue, EBITDA, cash flow and market share.

Vittorio Colao, group chief executive said, "Thanks to further strong progress this year in our key areas of strategic focus - data, enterprise and emerging markets - and an excellent performance from verizon wireless, we have achieved good growth in adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share. However, we have faced headwinds from a combination of continued tough economic conditions, particularly in Southern Europe, and an adverse European regulatory environment.

The Group is aiming to reach ten million Vodafone Red customers by March 2014, and to extend our 3G footprint at 43.2 Mbps and LTE coverage across our five major European markets to around 80 percent and 40percent respectively by March, 2015.

 

"I remain very excited about our longer term prospects, as customer appetite for high speed data grows rapidly, and companies look to embed mobility into their corporate strategies. The launch of Vodafone Red has been very successful, providing a solid underpinning for future revenue as customers take advantage of the best of the Vodafone experience. Our new targets for high speed mobile network coverage, announced today, combined with our growing capabilities in next generation fixed line access, strengthen our Vodafone 2015 strategy," commented Colao.

"With the announcement of today's 7 percent increase, the ordinary dividend per share has grown over 22 percent in the last three years. The board remains focused on balancing ongoing shareholder remuneration with the long-term investment needs of the business, and going forward aims at least to maintain the ordinary dividend per share at current levels."

As per the 2014 financial year guidance, Vodafone Group's adjusted operating profit is in the range of £12.0 billion to £12.8 billion and free cash flow of around £7 billion, including the £2.1 billion Verizon Wireless dividend to be received in June, 2013.