OREANDA-NEWS. “In 2017, Telenor delivered a solid set of results due to strong execution from across the company and continued follow-through on efficiency measures and our strategy. We met our financial targets and reported strong financial results for the past year, marked by a 1% organic increase in revenues and total net cost reductions of NOK 1.6 billion, leading to increased profitability and cash flow of NOK 25 billion.

During the fourth quarter, we saw continued subscription and traffic revenue growth and solid EBITDA uptake, on an organic basis. We achieved cost savings of NOK 0.6 billion during the final three months of the year, reported an EBITDA margin of 37% and added two million new mobile customers.

We enter 2018 with clear priorities to deliver on our digital transformation agenda, to continue to seek efficiency gains and revenue growth, while simplifying our portfolio and way of work across the company. Change starts with people, and in order to succeed with our transformation, we will continue to invest in our teams. We seek to personalise our customers’ experience and improve satisfaction based on their needs and preferences.

Telenor aims to create value by becoming even more efficient in how we operate, how we deliver our services and how customers experience us through the digitalisation of IT and technology and our customer journeys.  We are proud to connect our 178 million customers to what matters most to them. We truly believe that connected societies are empowered societies,” said Telenor Group CEO Sigve Brekke.

NOK (in millions)  Q4 2017 Q4 2016 FY 2017 FY 2016
Revenues 32 093 31 727 124 756 125 395
Organic revenue growth (%) (0.5) 0.6 0.7 0.8
Organic subscription and traffic revenue growth (%) 2.6 0.8 2.2 1.9
EBITDA before other income and other expenses 11 835 10 649 48 992 45 966
EBITDA before other income and other expenses/Revenues (%) 36.9 33.6 39.3 36.7
Net income attributable to equity holders of Telenor ASA 2 226 2 286 11 983 2 832
Capex excl. licences and spectrum/Revenues (%) 17.1 21.3 14.6 17.4
Capex/Revenues (%) 19.2 21.3 17.1 20.2
Free cash flow 3 327 1 509 24 867 10 300
Mobile subscriptions – Change in quarter/Total (mill.) 2.0 4.0 178 170

With effect from the first quarter 2017, Telenor India is treated as an asset held for sale and discontinued operations in Telenor’s financial reporting.

 Fourth quarter 2017 summary

  • Total reported revenues increased by 1% to NOK 32.1 billion. On an organic basis, revenues dropped 0.5%, while subscription and traffic revenues rose by 3%, positively impacted by a negative one-time item in Sweden last year.
  • Currency adjusted opex decreased by NOK 0.6 billion, or 5%.
  • EBITDA before other items was NOK 11.8 billion, corresponding to an EBITDA margin of 37%, an increase of 3 percentage points from last year.
  • Net income attributable to equity holders of Telenor ASA was NOK 2.2 billion, or NOK 1.49 earnings per share. Adjusted for impairment in Tapad of NOK 1.7 billion and reversal of impairment of NOK 1.2 billion in Denmark, net income was NOK 2.6 billion.
  • Capex excluding spectrum and licences was NOK 5.5 billion, resulting in a capex to sales ratio of 17%.
  • Free cash flow for the quarter was NOK 3.3 billion.

Shareholder remuneration

  • Based on the performance during the year, the Board of Directors proposes a dividend of NOK 8.10 for 2017, to be declared by the Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 2 May 2018. The dividend shall be split into two tranches of NOK 4.20 and NOK 3.90 per share, to be paid in May and November 2018, respectively.
  • The 2017 buyback programme is expected to be completed by the end of February 2018. The company plans to ask the AGM for a new buyback mandate to secure flexibility for additional shareholder remuneration.