BENGALURU – Bharti Airtel, Singtel’s associate company and India’s No. 2 telecom carrier by subscribers, on Tuesday reported fourth-quarter revenue that fell short of analysts’ expectations, as 4G user growth and per-user revenue stagnated.

Consolidated revenue from operations rose to 360.09 billion rupees (S$5.9 billion) for the quarter ended March 31, from 315 billion rupees a year ago, the company said in an exchange filing.

Analysts, on average, had expected revenue of 365.52 billion rupees, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

Analysts have flagged concerns of slowing revenue growth due to the absence of tariff hikes in recent years to cushion the load of telecommunications companies spending billions of dollars on buying 5G spectrum at an auction last August.

Airtel’s net profit rose nearly 50 per cent to 30.06 billion rupees, beating analysts’ estimate of 25.24 billion rupees despite a rise in costs. Total expenses rose nearly 12 per cent, led by higher marketing and network operating expenses.

The company’s average revenue per user (ARPU), a key performance indicator for telecom firms, was at 193 rupees, flat from the previous quarter, but up 8.4 per cent year on year.

In April, market leader Reliance Jio, the telecom arm of conglomerate Reliance Industries, said its fourth-quarter ARPU stood at 178.8 rupees, an increase of only 0.3 per cent from a quarter ago and a 6.7 per cent climb from a year ago.

Airtel said it added 7.4 million 4G data customers in the March quarter, with total 4G subscribers now at 224.12 million, an increase of 3.4 per cent from a quarter ago. It had posted a 3.1 per cent increase in 4G users in the December quarter.

The company declared a final dividend of 4 rupees per share for the 2023 financial year.

Shares of the company closed down 1.4 per cent at 785.60 rupees on Tuesday, before the earnings announcement. REUTERS