Mubasher: NCBC Capital set the price target (PT) of Saudi Telecom Company (STC) at SAR 68.9, with an “Overweight” recommendation, according to a statement.
STC reported a “higher-than-expected” set of Q3-16 financial results with a net income of SAR 2.2 billion, growing 18.7% quarter-on-quarter but declining 4.6% year-on-year. Q3-16 profits were higher than the NCBC estimates of SAR 1.8 billion.
“Higher than expected revenues and lower losses from the international operations were the key reasons behind the variance,” the NCBC Capital said.
The telecom operator’s Q3-16 revenues reached SAR 13.5 billion, up 4.7% year-on-year and 6.7% higher than the NCBC Capital’s estimates. The growth was mainly driven by a 33% year-on-year rise in the number of fiber-optics clients in Q3-16, in addition to a year-on-year increase in broadband, business segment and consolidated international operations by 3.4%, 20% and 2% respectively.
The results were also backed by lower early retirement charges and international operation losses.
