Boston, MA 05/29/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (ADR) (NYSE:MBT) is a $19 billion telecom company based in Russia. The company provides a wide range of telecom services that capture both wireless and wire line segments. Its latest quarterly performance showed significant improvement across its various segments.
The company expects to grow its sales by up to 5 percent this year. That promise comes even as economic growth in Russia remains a concern given the geopolitical tension in the region and widespread sanctions from the West.
Russia’s economy is expected to slow down to 0.5 percent in 2014. That compares with a growth of 1.3 and 3.4 percent in 2013 and 2012, respectively.
Reason For Optimism
Even in the face of grim economic projections, Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (ADR) (NYSE:MBT) is not bothered and expects to enjoy growth. The company looks to the increase in the adoption of smartphones and tablets as a potential driver for big data demand. The company looks forward to big growth across its various business segments but especially in the mobile Internet segment.
Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (ADR) (NYSE:MBT) competes with Megafon OAO (MCX:MFON) and VimpelCom Ltd (ADR) (NASDAQ:VIP) for the lucrative mobile market in Russia.
Beating Expectation
Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (ADR) (NYSE:MBT)’s 1Q financial results exceeded expectations. The company posted 5.3 percent growth in EBITDA to 41.5 billion rubles or $1.2 billion. Analysts on the average predicted EBITDA of 40.9 billion rubles.
Sales in the quarter did not disappoint. The company generated 5.1 percent growth in sales to 97.6 billion rubles, against the average sales estimate of 96.4 billion rubles for the quarter. The quarter saw data revenue in Russia alone hitting 14.3 billion rubles, suggesting 42 percent increase.
The company ended the quarter with 13 billion rubles in net income, translating to about 1 percent increase from the same period a year earlier.
As if that was not enough, Mobile TeleSystems OJSC (ADR) (NYSE:MBT) noted growth in subscriber numbers in 1Q, whereby customer-based increased by 0.8 percent to 108.7 million.
