Vodafone Idea shares rise 3% as Q4 loss narrows

Shares of Vodafone Idea (Vi) jumped over 3% in early Wednesday trade, a day after the telco’s net loss for the fiscal fourth-quarter beat estimates while narrowing to Rs 6,544.9 crore from Rs 7,234.1 crore on a sequential basis, supported by November tariff hikes, that helped average revenue per user (ARPU) grow, and a one-time gain.

Vi shares were up 3.3% at Rs 9.03 on BSE in early trade today. The telco’s quarterly revenue increased 5.4% sequentially to Rs 10,239.5 crore in the January-March quarter, while ARPU rose to Rs 124 from Rs 115 in the previous quarter.

On Tuesday, Vi said that the telecom department had computed the net present value (NPV) of the accrued interest due to the four-year deferral of the spectrum and adjusted gross revenue (AGR) payments at Rs 16,133.1 crore, a calculation since confirmed by the telco.


An analyst at a leading global brokerage said the NPV would likely lead to a government stake in Vi at around 32%, given that promoter Vodafone Group UK had recently increased its stake in the carrier to 47.61% after Rs 4,500 crore promoter-level infusions. Upon the NPV conversion, the government will become the single largest shareholder in the telco.

Vi’s managing director Ravinder Takkar said that having concluded the first tranche of its fundraising in the form of preferential equity contribution from the company’s promoters, Vodafone Group and the Aditya Birla Group, the cash-strapped company is actively engaged with lenders and investors for further fundraising.

The company plans to raise another Rs 10,000 crore via a mix of equity and debt. It has been in talks with PE firms like Apollo Global.