MTel: third-quarter profit drops 15%, confirms full-year guidance

Hungarian national operator Magyar Telekom (MTel) said its third-quarter net income for the three months to 30 September fell 14.8% year-on-year, in line with market expectations, and confirmed its full-year profit guidance. Net income for the period under review dropped to HUF22.76 billion (USD123.9 million) from HUF26.71 billion in 3Q08 as a result of a fall in retail voice and mobile wholesale revenues, the company said in its quarterly earnings statement. Analysts in a poll conducted by Reuters had forecast net income of HUF22.87 billion. ‘In the third quarter, Magyar Telekom continued to face strong head winds across all segments resulting from the recessionary economic environment and the government’s austerity measures,’ said MTel chairman and CEO Christopher Mattheisen. The Hungarian economy is currently navigating its way through the worst economic downturn in almost 20 years and as a result, MTel is experiencing a period of retrenchment as end users look to reduce their living costs. Nevertheless, the telco affirmed its profit guidance, issued in August, for an approximately 2% decline in revenue and a drop of up to 5% in EBITDA over last year’s results.