Maxis reports lower service revenue in Q2 2015, profits up

By Digital News Asia July 16, 2015

Profit after tax was 6.6% higher than Q1, at RM485mil
Number of revenue-generating subscribers grew to reach 12.2mil

MAXIS Bhd said its service revenue for the second quarter (Q2) of 2015 was RM2.094 billion, marginally lower than Q1 2015 but 2.2% higher than Q2 2014. [RM1 = US$0.26]

The quarter-on-quarter prepaid growth momentum was impacted by the recent implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on its prepaid service, the company said in a statement.

However, the number of revenue-generating subscribers grew further to reach 12.2 million in Q2. Maxis said it now has 9.1 million mobile Internet users and its smartphone penetration stood at 65%.

For the second quarter, Maxis registered an Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) of RM1.101 billion and an EBITDA margin of 52.2%, against RM1.047 billion and 48.7% in the previous quarter.

The improvement in EBITDA was mainly due to a lower quantum of foreign exchange losses in the quarter under review. Compared to the same quarter in the preceding year, EBITDA and EBITDA margin improved by 3.5% and 1.1 percentage points from RM1.064 million and 51.1% respectively, it added.

Profit after tax for the period stood at RM485 million, 6.6% higher than the RM455 million recorded in the preceding quarter and marginally higher than Q2 2014.

Maxis reports lower service revenue in Q2 2015, profits up “Operationally and financially, it was a good quarter for Maxis, taking into account the early GST hiccups and the general impact of GST on prepaid,” said chief executive officer Morten Lundal (pic).

The quarter also saw Maxis investing RM260 million to support network modernisation, LTE (Long-Term Evolution) expansion and capacity upgrade to support traffic growth.

Maxis said it will continue with a high capex (capital expenditure) of at least RM1.1 billion for 2015 to complete its network modernisation, drive 4G LTE expansion, as well as further improve capacity and quality.

It said its 4G LTE population coverage is approaching 41%, and it targets to reach over half of the Malaysian population by year-end.

The company announced a second interim dividend of five sen per share.