Vodafone Idea shares fall over 2% despite narrowing Q1 FY25 net loss; revenue dips

The stock was down 2.1% to ₹15.6 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) in the early trade and declined 2% to ₹15.6 on the BSE.

In the post-market hours on Monday, Vodafone Idea said its losses for the first quarter of fiscal 2024-25 shrank to ₹6,432.1 crore due to the addition of 4G subscribers. The company's losses stood at ₹7,840 crore in the year-ago period and ₹7,674.6 crore in Q4 FY24.

The revenue declined 1.3% year-on-year (YoY) to ₹10,508.3 crore in Q1 FY25. The telecom operator said its ARPU (average revenue per user) for the quarter under review stood at ₹146 compared to ₹139 a year back, reflecting 4.5% YoY growth.

Akshaya Moondra, CEO of Vodafone Idea (VI), said, "Post the recent equity raise, we are in the process of expanding our 4G coverage and capacity as well as the launch of 5G services. Some capex has already been ordered and is under the execution basis, which the telco expects about a 15 per cent increase in its data capacity and an increase in 4G population coverage by about 16 million by September 2024."

"Our current capex needs are being met out of equity funds. We are engaged, with our lenders for tying up debt funding towards the execution of our network expansion with a planned capex of ₹500 to ₹550 billion (₹50,000-₹55,000 crore) over the next three years," he said.

VI's total debt from financial institutions and banks stood at ₹4,650 crore, and optionally convertible debentures at ₹160 crore as of June 30, 2024.

"The debt from banks and financial institutions reduced by ₹45.5 billion during the last one year (from ₹92 billion in Q1FY24). The cash and bank balance stood at ₹181.5 billion as of June 30, 2024," as per VIL.

The payment obligations to the government stood at ₹2,09,520 crore as of June 30, 2024, including deferred spectrum payment obligations and AGR liability, the company said.

In an exchange filing, the company also informed that it has completely shut down 3G sites in seven circles, including Haryana, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Mumbai, Kerala, and Kolkata.

VI said it is also in the process of shutting down 3G across other circles.