PLDT Inc., the country’s largest telecommunications group, said Wednesday that first-quarter net income was flat at P9.02 billion from P9.08 billion in the year-earlier period, with higher income tax provision undermining revenue gains and the reduction in expenses.
Service revenue, net of interconnect costs, increased 2 percent to P47.1 billion, with PLDT Home and Enterprise providing the push. Data and broadband, which grew by 6 percent to P38.5 billion, contributed 82 percent of consolidated service revenues.
“Because of soaring inflationary pressures, we must strive to attain cost-efficiency and operational excellence in order to provide leveled-up customer experiences while keeping our products and services affordable for our subscribers. We continue with our transformation initiatives to strengthen our core business as we plan for our growth strategies,” said Alfredo Panlilio, PLDT and Smart president and chief executive president
Panlilio said the business remains strong, with earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization margin in the first quarter at 52 percent–within the full-year target of 53 percent.
PLDT reported first-quarter core profit of P8.64 billion, up 5 percent from last year. It, however, didn’t provide a guidance for core profit for the year because the financial figures are still under review.
Panlilio said the guidance for capital expenditure this year stays at P80 billion to P85 billion, with the bulk going to the fixed network.
Last year, PLDT disclosed capital expenditures budget overrun of $862 million between 2019 and 2022 due to overbuying network equipment. PLDT said it substantially completed investigation on the cost overruns and found no evidence of fraud. It has negotiated with suppliers to cut the cost.
“The capex overrun issues have largely been resolved; it is time in 2023 for PLDT to face forward, and move on. We should now channel our energies towards keeping the PLDT Group well-positioned for growth amidst this challenging macro-economic environment,” said PLDT chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan.
“As inflation pressures continue to bear down upon our consumers, we continue to improve our operations and find ways to be cost-efficient in order to keep our products and services relevant and affordable for our customers, while staying profitable,” he added.
