PETALING JAYA: Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd
’s near-term business outlook remains cautious but shows signs of gradual stabilisation.
An analyst noted that the company is seeing early progress from its transformation initiatives, supported by improving advertising demand, broadband growth and stronger contributions from its content and film segments.
“Astro continues to focus on its ‘Astro One’ strategy, which combines pay-TV, streaming services, and broadband into bundled packages aimed at improving customer retention and attracting new users.
“At the same time, the group is expanding its digital ecosystem through platforms such as Sooka, Astro Fibre, and digital advertising solutions.”
Despite these efforts, he said Astro still faces several challenges.
“Ongoing content piracy continues to affect subscription revenue, while consumer preferences are shifting toward global streaming platforms and lower-cost digital alternatives.”
Additionally, he said the company also faces pressure from content rights changes and weaker profitability, with earnings impacted by declining traditional pay-TV subscriptions and higher operating costs.
“Overall, Astro’s outlook reflects a business in transition – with improving operational momentum in digital services, but continued pressure from structural changes in the media and entertainment industry.”
Astro reported a 51.1% drop in net profit to RM65.13mil in its financial year ended Jan 31, 2026 (FY26), as revenue declined 9.1% to RM2.79bil, weighed down by weaker subscription and advertising income, as well as softer contributions from rental and programming rights.
Despite the weak full-year performance, Astro’s fourth-quarter (4Q26) results showed a silver lining.
Revenue for the quarter slipped 7% to RM712.88mil, dragged by declines in both subscription and advertising segments, but net profit more than doubled to RM24.07mil from RM10.49mil a year earlier, largely due to lower financing costs and favourable unrealised foreign-exchange gains.
Segment-wise, its television business – the main earnings contributor – saw FY26 revenue fall 8.6% to RM2.65bil, while profit before tax declined 34% to RM58.3mil due to lower subscription and advertising revenue.
Pay-TV residential average revenue per user dropped to RM94.30 in FY26 from RM98.50 in the previous financial year.
Meanwhile, the radio segment continued to underperform, with revenue declining 17.7% to RM142mil in FY26 due to weaker advertising spending amid softer consumer sentiment, while profit before tax plunged 59% to RM36mil.
