Continue to remain positive on Airtel post Q4 results: SBICap Securities

Tariff hike helped Airtel improve ARPU numbers and the capex has only declined marginally, says Rajiv Sharma, head of research.

What are your key takeaways from the Airtel quarterly numbers?
If you look at the Airtel numbers, one thing is very clear here. The tariff has really played out well and we have seen a sharp jump in the average revenue per user (ARPU) numbers for the India mobile business, which has come at 14% quarter on quarter and it is the highest possibly in 30 quarters. And that led to a 16% increase in the revenues and it is driving the consolidated EBITDA up 10% as well. So tariff hike has played out well. We were expecting Rs 147 ARPU to be precise this quarter. However, the surprise is quite meaningful. They have come at Rs 154.

The other positive we do see is the strong additions on the 4G side. There was a sharp increase quarter on quarter on the 4G subscribers and that is encouraging. And the capex investment has continued this quarter. Also, if you look at the year-on-year figures, the total capex is down only 12%. So this was the first year where