Airtel Africa Plc released its Q3 2022 Unaudited results for the period ended December 31^st, 2022.

Key Highlights

• Revenue grew by 12.08% from $3.49bn to $3.91bn.
• Profit before tax stood at $801m
• Profit after tax stood at $523m
• Share Price Currently Stands at N1660k

Highlights 

• Total customer base increased to 138.5 million (up 10.1%), as the penetration of mobile data and mobile money services continued to rise, driving the data customer base up 13.6% and mobile money customer base up 22.2%. 
• ARPU growth of 7.2% in constant currency, largely driven by increased usage across voice, data, and mobile money. 
• Mobile money transaction value increased by 37.0%, to an annualised value of almost $100bn in Q3’23. 
• Revenue in reported currency grew by 12.1%, to $3,914m with Q3’23 growth of 10.7%. 
• Revenue growth in constant currency was 17.3% (18.0% in Q3’23) driven by double digit growth across all reporting segments. Mobile Services revenue in Nigeria grew by 20.9%, in East Africa by 11.9% and in Francophone Africa by 11.8% (and across the Group by 15.9%, with voice revenue growth of 12.7%and data revenue up 22.3%). Mobile Money revenue grew by 29.8%, driven by 32.5% growth in East Africa and 21.7% in Francophone Africa. 
• EBITDA was $1,916m, up 12.6% in reported currency and 17.4% in constant currency, with an EBITDA margin of 49.0%, increasing 20 basis points in reported currency and broadly flat in constant currency. 
• Profit after tax was $523m, up 1.7%, as EBITDA growth was partially offset by higher foreign exchange and derivative losses of $184m. 
• EPS before exceptional items was 10.8 cents, a reduction of 5.8% largely driven by higher foreign exchange and derivative losses of $184m. Basic EPS increased to 12.5 cents (up by 6.3%) as a result of deferred tax asset recognition in Kenya. EPS before exceptional items and excluding foreign exchange and derivative losses increased by 21.6%. 
• Capex increased 5.8% to $457m, in line with our guidance, as we continue to invest for future growth. Additionally, we acquired spectrum in Nigeria, DRC, Tanzania, Zambia and Kenya over the nine-month period. 
• In July 2022, the Group prepaid $450m of outstanding external debt at HoldCo. The remaining debt at HoldCo is now $550m, falling due in May 2024. The leverage ratio of 1.4x was slightly higher than the September 2022 level (1.3x), largely driven by the acquisition of spectrum in Nigeria.

Segun Ogunsanya, chief executive officer, on the trading update:

“Providing affordable, innovative and essential services to customers in our 14 markets with unparalleled network quality and customer service is integral to our ambition of transforming lives across Africa. These strong results are testament to this strategy despite the current macro-economic and geopolitical uncertainties. The execution of our six-pillar strategy continues to provide the foundation for growth, driving 10% customer growth, supported by 14% growth in data customers and over 22% growth in mobile money customers. Higher usage across voice, data and money, have contributed to further ARPU growth of over 7%, resulting in 18% revenue growth in the quarter as penetration across each segment continues to increase. I am particularly excited by the performance of our mobile money business, with annualized transaction value reaching nearly $100bn, as we continue to drive financial inclusion in the continent. Despite the inflationary pressures across our markets, the strong revenue performance in the first nine months of the year, combined with continued focus on cost optimisation, contributed to EBITDA growth of over 17% in constant currency, with stable EBITDA margins. Our strong operating performance, combined with continued focus on our capital allocation priorities has facilitated the de-risking of our balance sheet with the early repayment of $450m HoldCo debt in July this year.

We will continue to invest in expanding our network and evolving our service offerings to further deepen both financial and digital inclusion across our markets. We have especially focussed on enhancing our spectrum footprint across all our markets. Over the last nine months we have spent almost $490m on 4G and 5G spectrum across key markets to improve network capacity and quality, future-proof the company for continued growth opportunities and facilitate economic progress in all our markets. 

I am particularly pleased with these results which demonstrate the opportunities these markets offer, our ability to deliver against these opportunities and the contribution we make to local communities and economies across our footprint. For the remainder of the financial year. we continue to anticipate sustained growth in the business with continued EBITDA margin resilience “

Airtel Africa plc (“Airtel Africa” or “Group”) results for nine-month period ended 31 December 2022 are unaudited and in the opinion of management, include all adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the results of the same period. The financial information in this press release has been drawn from interim financial statements prepared based on International Accounting Standard 34 (IAS 34) issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) approved for use in the United Kingdom (“UK”) by the UK Accounting Standards Endorsement Board (UKEB) and apply the same accounting policies, presentation and methods of calculation as those followed in the preparation of the Group’s annual consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2022 except to the extent required/ prescribed by IAS 34. This report should be read in conjunction with audited annual consolidated financial statements and related notes for the year ended 31 March 2022. Comparative annual information has been drawn based on Airtel Africa plc’s Audited Consolidated Financial Statements for the year ended 31 March 2022; with quarterly and nine-month period information drawn from the unaudited IAS 34 financials of the respective periods. All comparatives and references to the ‘prior period’ or ‘previous period’ in this report are for the reported metrics for the quarterly and nine-month period ended 31 December 2021 unless otherwise stated.