PLDT Q2 profit down 9%, exits NTT Japan talks for data center sale
PANGILINAN-LED PLDT Inc. saw a 9% decrease in its attributable net income for the second quarter (Q2), falling to P8.59 billion from last year’s P9.44 billion due to higher expenses for the period.
For the April-to-June period, the company registered a combined revenue of P53.36 billion, marking a 3.3% increase from P51.68 billion a year ago.
PLDT’s expenses for the second quarter climbed by 4.5% to P20.47 billion from P19.58 billion in the comparable period last year.
For the first half, the telecommunications company registered an attributable net income of P18.41 billion, lower by 0.21% from P18.45 billion previously despite posting higher revenues for the first six months of the year.
PLDT’s telco core income, which excludes the impact of asset sales and Maya Innovations Holdings, formerly Voyager Innovations Holdings, reached P18.01 billion, higher by 2.6% from P17.56 billion a year ago.
The company saw its gross revenue climb to P107.58 billion, higher by 3.4% compared with P104.04 billion previously.
Service revenues accounted for P103.44 billion of the company’s total revenues, marking an increase of 4.1% from last year’s P99.3 billion.
Broken down, its service revenues were driven by its individual wireless segment, which posted revenue of P41.9 billion, followed by home business revenues at P30 billion, and enterprise revenues at P24 billion.
To date, active data users stood at 40.5 million, PLDT said, adding that its mobile data traffic increased by 11% year on year to 2,641 petabytes.
“With the all-time highs delivered in recent periods behind us, we turn to the future that we are tasked to build for PLDT with careful optimism. As we continue our pursuit of higher shareholder values, our focus on exceptional service to our customers remains intense. We continue to be confident that, as before, we will make it through with the perseverance, dedication, and innovation of our people,” PLDT Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said.
Despite posting lower attributable net income, PLDT Senior Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer and Chief Risk Management Officer Danny Y. Yu said the company is still optimistic about hitting its target of mid-single-digit service revenue growth for the year.
DATA CENTER SALE
Further, PLDT hopes to conclude the sale of its data center business, ePLDT, Inc., to a new foreign entity by next year, Mr. Pangilinan said, adding that the offer of this new investor is more than $1 billion.
“I think if we were to proceed [with the sale] it is likely that we are going to sign with the new investor within a year or before the end. But this is likely to be subject to [review]. It is probably next year,” Mr. Pangilinan said.
“Well, I think the best way to describe this is that we are still in discussion with one particular potential investor for the data center,” he said.
Earlier, PLDT was in talks to sell up to 49% of its data center business to Japan’s Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT); however, Mr. Pangilinan said PLDT is dropping its negotiation with NTT Japan because it wants a majority of ePLDT’s stake.
“[NTT Japan] wanted a majority. [ePLDT] is making money and the growth potential is there, there are interested parties,” he said.
To date, PLDT, through its subsidiary ePLDT, has 11 data centers, including the 50-megawatt hyperscale data center in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
At the local bourse on Tuesday, shares in the company gained P7 or 0.44% to end at P1,601 apiece.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Ashley Erika O. Jose