Maroc Telecom Group reported a 10.2 percent year-on-year drop in its net income for the first quarter to MAD 1.32 billion, hurt by lower results in its home market. The group's customer base stood at nearly 52 million at the end of March, up 32 percent year-on-year after the consolidation of six African subsidiaries from its new parent company Etisalat since 26 January. Revenue reached MAD 7.94 billion, up 10.2 percent over the first quarter of 2014 due to the expansion of the group's scope, while revenues were down 0.7 percent on a like-for-like basis. Morocco's fall in revenue of 3.1 percent was almost offset by the 5.9 percent like-for-like increase in revenues from international activities. Revenue from the newly acquired subsidiaries fell 1.3 percent at constant exchange rates, while revenue from the historic subsidiaries rose by 9.1 percent at constant rates.
EBITDA amounted to MAD 4.03 billion, up 2.2 percent on a reported basis but down 2.0 percent on a like-for-like comparison. The underlying decline reflects the 8.1 percent drop in EBITDA in Morocco, only partly offset by the 14.0 percent increase in EBITDA from international activities. Despite the dilutive effect of consolidating the new African subsidiaries, the group's EBITDA margin remained high at 50.7 percent, representing a decline of 4.0 points compared with the first quarter of 2014. For the full year 2015, the group expects stable revenue, a slight decrease in EBITDA and capex of around 20 percent of revenues, excluding frequencies, licences and 4G investments in Morocco.
