Bezeq Israel Telecommunications Company Ltd. (TASE:BZEQ) today reported first quarter revenue of NIS 2.26 billion, up 1.5% from the first quarter of 2021. Net profit in the first quarter of 2022 was NIS 282 million, down 31% from the corresponding quarter of 2021 but adjusted net profit was NIS 322 million, up 7.7%.
Bezeq's deployment of fiber optic cables is beginning to be felt with a 4% rise in revenue in the first quarter from the preceding quarter and a 9% rise in Internet revenue to NIS 434 million and a 6.7% rise in revenue from data transmission to NIS 286 million. But landline revenue fell 9.1% in the first quarter of 2022 to NIS 220 million from NIS 241 million in the first quarter of 2021. Fiber optic services now reach 1.193 million households, up 129,000 from the previous quarter, Bezeq reports.
Bezeq chairman Gil Sharon continued, "We presented excellent group financial results in the first quarter of the year, with improvement in key parameters, attesting to the strategic plan presented recently with a focus on growth. The Group's strong results and financial stability enabled us to return to dividend distributions and for the first time in three and a half years, a dividend of NIS 240 million was distributed to shareholders this month.
Outgoing Bezeq CEO Dudu Mizrahi added, "We posted excellent results in the first quarter of 2022 recording the highest quarterly revenues since the end of 2015, the year when the wholesale market was launched over the company's broadband infrastructure. Fiber deployment and customer connections continued to grow at a high pace; today we have brought fiber optics to 1.25 million households and connected 143,000 customers. This quarter we recorded a sharp increase in the average broadband speed, reaching 151 Mbps as compared to 78 Mbps last year. The increase in the broadband speed and the growth rate of fiber connections, together with the continued penetration of Be routers and Wifi-enhancers allowed for the rapid growth in the average revenue per subscriber (ARPU), which reached NIS 110, compared to NIS 103 a year ago. In addition, the company's business sector activity continued to grow, adding significant revenue increases and activity volume."
He added, "On a personal note, I feel pleased to leave Bezeq with the present growth momentum, following the successful launch of the fiber project, one of the most complex projects the company has implemented, and which has resulted in deployment to more than 1.25 million households so far. I leave behind a growing, stable and solid company with clear leadership in the telecommunications market, and I am proud of that."
Bezeq was boosted by strong results from its PelePhone mobile telecom unit. Revenue in the first quarter of 2022 was NIS 437 million, up 11.7% from NIS 392 million in the corresponding quarter of 2021. The company benefitted from the recovery of international travel and the sale of overseas roaming services. Net profit in the first quarter of 2022 grew sevenfold to NIS 56 million.
Ran Guron, CEO of Pelephone, yes and Bezeq International said, "We posted a strong quarter with exceptional financial results. Pelephone and yes showed significant profitability and free cash flow improvements. Pelephone continued its turnaround that began in 2021 and maintained its positive trends, resulting in an increase in service revenues and the highest quarterly profit level achieved in the past eight years. In yes, we are the largest IPTV player in Israel today while maintaining positive free cash flow. In Bezeq International, we are already operating within the new regulatory reality and are focused on the business ICT sector."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on May 24, 2022.
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