STARHUB posted a net profit of S$40.4 million for its third quarter, up 11.1 per cent from S$36.4 million in the year-ago period.
Despite the rise in earnings, revenue for Q3 2024 fell 5.8 per cent to S$575.2 million, from S$610.9 million in Q3 2023, the telco said on Wednesday (Nov 13).
The fall in revenue was attributed mainly to the timing of revenue recognition in the cybersecurity services segment, and was offset by higher revenue from the enterprise managed services, regional informations and communications technology services, and broadband businesses.
Meanwhile, the earnings growth was driven by higher profit from operations, increased net non-operating income, a greater share of profits from associates and joint ventures, as well as lower taxes.
Mobile revenue fell 6.5 per cent to S$143.3 million in Q3 2024, from S$153.3 million in the same period a year ago.
Mobile postpaid average revenue per user (Arpu) fell to S$30 in Q3 2024 from S$32 in Q3 2023, due to fewer plan subscriptions, lower value-added services revenue, and decreased usage revenue from excess data, SMS, international calls and voice calls.
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But quarter on quarter, Arpu remained stable despite competition in the value segment.
Mobile postpaid subscribers also rose to 1.7 million in Q3 2024, from 1.6 million in the year-ago period. It was also higher than the 1.6 million in Q2 2024. The monthly churn rate in Q3 remained stable at 1.1 per cent.
Broadband revenue rose 1.4 per cent to S$63.2 million in Q3, from S$62.4 million a year ago. Arpu in this segment also grew, to S$35 in Q3 2024 from S$34 in Q3 2023. It was also an improvement from the S$34 in Q2 2024.
StarHub attributed the improved broadband Arpu to greater take-up of its 5 gigabits per second (Gbps) and 10 Gbps plans.
Entertainment revenue declined 8.1 per cent to S$52.1 million in Q3 2024, from S$56.7 million in Q3 2023. This was mainly due to lower subscription and advertising revenue, partially offset by higher commercial TV revenue.
Enterprise revenue excluding D’Crypt – the sale of the cryptographic technology company was completed in February – was S$235 million in Q3 2024, a 3.1 per cent fall from S$242.5 million in Q3 2023. This was largely due to the revenue recognition timing in cybersecurity services projects.
“We remain laser-focused on bringing our customers new value while we drive sustainable long-term total shareholder return,” said StarHub CEO Nikhil Eapen.
Shares of StarHub closed down 0.8 per cent, or S$0.01, at S$1.19 on Wednesday.
