Liberty Latin America revenues rise 3% in Q2, adds 110,000 subs

Liberty Latin America reported revenues of USD 983 million in the second quarter of 2019, up around 3 percent on a rebased basis compared to the year-earlier figure of USD 922 million thanks to the addition of over 110,000 subscribers across its fixed and mobile services. The company’s operating cash flow (OCF) for the quarter climbed around 8 percent to USD 387 million on a rebased basis and it posted a EUR 144 million operating profit, a 16 percent year on year rise on the back of growth across all its segments.

In a statement Liberty Latin America chief executive Balan Nair described the results as showing further evidence of the company’s developing operational momentum, driven by revamped plans at Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC). These delivered record second quarter fixed RGU additions of 30,000 as well as 24,000 new mobile subscribers, led by Jamaica, where the company’s new “Paint Jamaica Blue” campaign showed early success.

Liberty Latin America’s VTR and Cabletica units in Chile and Costa Rica added a total of 31,000 fixed RGUs during Q2. Chile’s VTR added 22,000 RGUs driven by 18,000 broadband and 9,000 video RGU additions, thanks in part to an increase in the top broadband speed to 600 Mbps, which helped to offset by fixed-line telephony RGU losses. The unit also added another 10,000 mobile subscribers in the second quarter to increase its customer base to 276,000 at the end of June, 97 percent of which were on postpaid plans. In Costa Rica Cabletica added 9,000 RGUs, driven by broadband gains.

Liberty also continued to increase its customer base in Puerto Rico following the restoration of the hurricane-impacted network in 2018, adding some 5,000 RGUs across all products in the second quarter. The company was keen to stress that its Q2 2019 revenue of USD 104 million in Puerto Rico now compares well to the revenue that was generated in the last full quarter preceding the hurricanes (USD 108 million in Q2 2017).