German telecoms giant Deutsche Telekom today beat expectations with its first net profit in almost two years.
Europe's largest telecoms carrier said its first-quarter net profit was €850 million ($977.5 million), versus a €1.8 billion net loss a year ago, as earnings at its fixed-line and mobile units surged. Profits were also helped by the sale of assets and tax effects.
The group narrowed its guidance for full-year EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation) to €17.2 billion-€17.7 billion after first-quarter EBITDA climbed to €4.5 billion ($5.18 billion), beating analysts' estimates.
Excluding special factors, it posted net profit of €100 million, up from a loss of €1.4 billion, on sales of €13.6 billion.
Net debt fell by €4.8 billion to €56.3 billion. Fixed-line unit T-Com, the cash-generating core of Deutsche Telekom, beat analyst expectations with a 7.2 per cent rise in adjusted EBITDA to €2.7 billion.
Job and cost cuts helped streamline the business, which is its key to paying down debt.
AFP
