55.3% Data Growth boosts MTN Nigeria 2021 Numbers.
MTN Nigeria last week released its results for the 2021 financial year. Here are a few key points from the numbers. We will update this post, with additional information after the analyst call which should take place sometime this week.
The broad numbers
Revenue grew by 22.9% from ₦1.3 trillion in 2020 to ₦1.6 trillion in 2021. Profit after tax grew by 45.5% from ₦205 billion in 2020 to ₦298 billion in 2021.
The company has proposed a final dividend of ₦8.57 per share. A final dividend is one paid after a company’s full-year audited results are released.
Last year, the company paid an interim dividend of ₦4.55. An interim dividend is one paid before the conclusion of a company’s financial year. MTN Nigeria typically pays a half year dividend.
The dividend payout for 2021 will amount to ₦13.12.
The payment date for the dividend is sometime in April, perhaps to give room for the allotment of the shares sold last year to be concluded.
Subscriber growth came in soft
Mobile subscriber growth came in soft for the year, due to a freeze on new sim registration due to NIN requirements. It declined from 76.5 million in 2021 to 68.5 million in 2020
Management did state however that growth picked up in Q4, but didn’t provide numbers.
Data growth is strong
Data revenue grew by 55.3% from ₦332 billion in 2020 to ₦516 billion in 2021. Data subscribers grew by 5.3% from 32.6 million in 2020 to 34.3 million in 2021.
In an earnings release, management disclosed it
“recorded a sustained increase in the demand for data, which extended beyond the usage spikes seen during COVID lockdowns”
That led to an increase in capital expenditure by 36.7% to N408.3 billion with a large focus on the firm’s 4G network. If data revenue maintains double-digit growth of at least 20% per annum, it could hit the ₦1 trillion mark in 5 years.
EBITDA margins went up
EBITDA margins inched up slightly from 50.9% in 2020 to 53% in 2021. EBITDA means Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization.
Simply put, of every. ₦100 in revenue the firm earns, ₦50.3 is operating profit.
