Globe sees sustained 2-digit growth in core earnings

MANILA, Philippines - Ayala-led Globe Telecom Inc. sees a sustained double digit growth in its core earnings this year on steady subscriber growth and strong demand for mobile data services.

Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest L. Cu said the telco provider reported a 13 percent growth in core income to P3.086 billion in the first quarter from P2.74 billion in the same quarter last year.

The company’s core income that excludes foreign exchange transactions, mark-to-market gains and losses as well as non-recurring items in the first three months was also double the P1.5 billion booked in the fourth quarter of last year.

“Our mobile business continues to perform strongly on the back of postpaid and prepaid acquisitions,” Cu stressed.

He added that the growth could be attributed to the success of the company’s revolutionary customizable postpaid plans.

He said the company sees a steady growth in its subscriber base as it continues to reinvest in acquisitions to protect and advance its market share.

“The strategy of reinvesting in acquisitions will enable us to sustain our topline and enhance our overall value as a business. We’ve always been very focused on gaining market share, the momentum we have in place will allow us to continue market advancement,” Cu said.

He added that the completion within the year of the company’s network and IT transformation program is expected to further enhance customer experience and ensure the network is ready for the present and future demands of the market.

Globe’s consolidated service revenues in the first three months of the year grew six percent to P21.36 billion compared with P20.25 billion in the year earlier as revenues from its mobile business inched up by three percent to P17.12 billion from P16.57 billion.

Mobile revenues, which account for 80 percent of the company’s total topline, drew support from the growth in domestic voice, mobile browsing and value added services as subscriber growth gained traction during the quarter.