GP’s sales declined, profits rose in 2024

Grameenphone's profits rose in 2024, although its sales dropped slightly during the year amid weak macroeconomic conditions and high inflation.

The country's top telecommunications company registered a revenue of Tk 15,844 crore last year, compared to Tk 15,871 crore in the previous year.

The yearly turnover declined as the company witnessed lower turnovers in the last two quarters of the year.

The GP's net profit grew by 9.7 percent year-on-year to Tk 3,630 crore from the previous year's Tk 3,307 crore.

An analysis of its financial reports found that its profit rose mainly due to lower finance expenses.

Finance expenses declined primarily due to the company keeping a provision of Tk 20 crore against regulatory disputes in 2024, compared to Tk 426 crore in the previous year.

The company set aside a lower provision against regulatory disputes this year as it had already paid off a large portion of the disputed amount.

It has been maintaining provisions against regulatory disputes over the past couple of years based on the outcome of court proceedings. Grameenphone has several ongoing disputes.

For instance, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) carried out an information system audit of Grameenphone for the period from 1997 to 2011 in 2012 through a BTRC-appointed auditor.

It then issued a notice to Grameenphone, claiming an amount exceeding Tk 3,034 crore in the form of outstanding dues under various categories.

Due to the increase in profits, the company announced a 170 percent cash dividend, bringing its total yearly dividend to 330 percent.

This is the highest amount of dividend paid in the company's history since its listing on the stock exchange in 2009.

It claimed that it had demonstrated resilience in business, efficiently navigating a tough economic climate.

It said revenue remained resilient amid seasonal trends, weak macroeconomic conditions, and high inflation.

Following the lower revenue generation, its operating profit declined, but at a higher rate due to increased raw material costs. Operating profits were down 8 percent year-on-year to Tk 5,912 crore.

The telecom operator reported earnings per share (EPS) of Tk 26.89, up from Tk 24.49 in the previous year, according to a disclosure on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) website.

Its net operating cash flow per share rose to Tk 45.91, compared to Tk 44.88 in 2023.

Yesterday, the company's stock price rose by 0.47 percent to Tk 338 on the DSE.

The company claimed that it saw industry-leading customer growth, fuelled by the best network and best value combination.