PETALING JAYA: Telecommunication player CelcomDigi Bhd
registered a 9% growth in net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2026 (1Q26) to RM418mil compared to 1Q25 on the back of lower operating expenses and device costs.
CelcomDigi said in a statement that revenue for the quarter under review was stable at RM3.21bil, which included a decline in prepaid revenue due to the strategic shift away from one-time prepaid SIM acquisitions and device revenue.
However, this was mitigated by its service revenue growing 1.6% to RM2.6bil, supported by continued growth momentum in postpaid, home and fibre, and enterprise solutions.
Earnings before interest and tax were up 4.7% at RM729mil, while capital expenditure declined 20.9% to RM117mil.
The company closed the quarter with 20.4 million subscribers and declared a first interim dividend of 3.4 sen per share, in line with its sustainable dividend commitment to shareholders.
It will be payable on June 30, 2026.
Its chief executive officer, Albern Murty said moving forward, the company will continue sharpening its portfolio to drive higher-quality, sustainable value for the consumer segment.
“We will do this through stronger mobile and home and fibre propositions, as well as more personalised, segment-based services that enhance customer experience.
“We continue to focus on a more disciplined, data-driven approach to operational efficiency that will sustain growth and margin,” he said.
For the quarter, postpaid revenue grew 3.1% year-on-year to RM1.10bil as its subscriber base expanded to 6.1 million customers – driven by quality net adds and disciplined customer retention management.
“This drove the portfolio to higher-value plans and lifted the average revenue per account to RM113mil.”
As for its prepaid segment, revenue was down 3% on a yearly basis at RM1.02bil, primarily driven by two fewer revenue days.
Its home and fibre segment grew to RM89mil on the back of additional subscribers that rose to almost 297,000 customers.
Revenue from the enterprise mobile segment grew by 3.7% while revenue from enterprise solutions increased by almost 30%.
Meanwhile, the company said the current geopolitical situation’s main impact has been on the supply chain and energy costs.
However, it does not expect geopolitics to materially impact its outlook for the year.
It said the three-year integration and transformation programme is in its final stretch, as network modernisation and integration have surpassed 90% completion.
As for its 5G venture, CelcomDigi, together with the other Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) shareholders, is in the process of completing the acquisition of the Finance Ministry’s shareholding in DNB.
