telecommunications
Deutsche Telekom increases revenue and profit
Deutsche Telekom was able to increase its sales and profits. Photo: Federico Gambarini/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
Things are going well for Deutsche Telekom: The Bonn-based group is benefiting primarily from its service revenues.
Deutsche Telekom increased sales and profits significantly in the first quarter. At the start of the year, revenue rose by 6.2 percent to a good 28 billion euros, the Dax company announced on Friday in Bonn.
Europe’s largest telecom group benefited from its service revenues, which grew at a disproportionately high rate. At 3.9 billion euros, profit was more than four times as high as in the previous year. However, this was mainly due to the partial sale of fiber optics plus and the completion of the sale of T-Mobile Netherlands. But even adjusted for this, the profit of 2.2 billion euros was almost twice as high as a year ago.
After its American subsidiary T-Mobile US, Telekom also raised its annual targets. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization including leasing costs (Ebitda AL) for the current year, adjusted for special effects, should be more than 36.6 billion euros and thus slightly better than previously forecast, it was said. Compared to the previous year’s figure on a pro forma basis – i.e. excluding the disposal of the businesses in Romania and the Netherlands – this would be a slight improvement.
The operating result without distortion from the marketing of end devices is now said to be more than 35.6 billion euros. Here, too, that would be a little better than promised. The free inflow of funds should also be slightly higher than previously targeted at more than ten billion euros. In the previous year, the value was 8.8 billion euros.
In April, Deutsche Telekom increased its stake in T-Mobile US. In doing so, it is continuing to pursue its goal of grabbing the majority of Americans sooner or later. The Bonn-based company currently holds 48.4 percent of the American company, which is considered particularly lucrative due to the huge US market. CEO Tim Höttges has contractually agreed until June 2024 to secure T-Mobile US shares from the Japanese company Softbank.