Advanced Info Service PCL (ADVANC), one of the largest mobile phone operators in Thailand, has reported its quarterly earnings through the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) showing losses due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
Net profit of ADVANC in the second quarter of 2020 (pre-TFRS 16) was 7,235 million baht, down 6.7 per cent year-on-year.
While the post-TFRS 16 result, ADVANC saw a decline in its net profits to 7,001 million baht, dropping by 9.71 per cent compared to the same quarter of last year.
The company also reported a decline in profit for the first 6 months of this year. The number stood at 13,757 million baht, down by 10.22 per cent from the same period last year.
Total ADVANC mobile subscribers in 2Q20 stood at 41 million, declining only 0.3% from the previous quarter.
Postpaid segment gained 396,000 new subscribers, while the Prepaid segment saw a loss of 532,000 subscribers due to the drop in tourist numbers from COVID-19.
The work-from-home trend increased AIS fibre subscribers to 112,000 in the 2Q20 while the country was under lockdown.
However, the earnings result of ADVANC turned out to be better than what analysts expected.
An analyst from Bualuang Securities modeled a 6,860 million baht net profit for the 2nd quarter of 2020, down 12 percent year-on-year.
The report from Bualuang Securities said that investors should ignore the bottom-out result of 2Q20 and consider strong recovery starting from May-June through the rest of 2020.
Bualaung say they see a significant increase in the demand for new SIM cards, devices and handsets after the government announced lockdown easing measures.
“ADVANC remains our sectoral pick, premised on being the potential 5G leader and its attractive valuation,” Prasit Sujiravorakul, an analyst from Bualaung, said in the 2Q20 outlook report.
