Mobilink posted a strong positive growth of 17 percent on its YoY organic revenue for the quarter ended 30th September 2016 (Q3 2016) driven by growth in all revenue streams. For the same period, the company has reported Rs 38.5 billion post-merger consolidated revenue for both companies, up from Rs 25.9 billion as reported in Q3 2015.
Mobilink's ascent was driven by a data revenue growth of 71 percent YoY mainly due to successful data monetization initiatives, including attractive bundle offers and the unification of the tariff portfolio, together with continued 3G network expansion.
Mobilink also witnessed a higher Mobile Financial Services (MFS) YoY revenue increase of 42 percent thanks to new over-the-counter ("OTC") products and higher agent activity.
"We are pleased to report third quarter results that reflect stronger customer demand and business performance," said Aamir Ibrahim, CEO - Mobilink and Warid. "Our stand-alone revenues have shown an increase of 17 percent owing to the strength of Jazz services portfolio and our ever growing subscriber base."
"Our customers are benefiting from the significant investments we are making towards new services, and digitization of current portfolios, which allows us to exceed customer expectations through provision of digital communications solution for a better lifestyle. In terms of investment, we also completed the largest telecommunications merger in the country's history during Q3, and have already realised post-merger synergies of Rs 500 million from site sharing and marketing costs optimization. Looking forward, we will continue our investments in service up-gradation and innovation, while also giving back to the community we operate in. I'am confident through consistent innovation, and continuous support and expertise of Mobilink's nationwide team we will sustain our positive momentum in the coming year," he further added.
Underlying EBITDA margin, excluding integration costs related to the Warid transaction, was 42 percent in Q3 2016, supported by Warid's improved margin resulting from the progress of integration activities. Capex increased to Rs 7.6 billion in Q3 2016 with a LTM capex to revenue ratio of 15.9 percent, driven by integration expenses. LTM operating cash flow margin was 27.2 percent in Q3 2016.
This growth follows Mobilink's successful completion of Pakistan's largest telecommunications merger, a deal it closed during July 2016. Apart from already realizing post-merger synergies of Rs 500 million, the Telco has been able to facilitate its subscribers through the introduction of On-net packages, whereby more than 50 million customers will be able to talk On-Net between Jazz and Warid numbers.-PR