Globe Telecom Inc. posted P151.5 billion revenues in 2021, up 4 percent year-on-year (YoY), resulting in net income of P23.7 billion, the telco disclosed.
Globe reported Wednesday, Feb. 9, that it netted P23.7 billion earnings, up 27 percent from its 2020 net income, due to a 2 percent increase in EBITDA, and the 57 percent decline in non-operating charges.
Excluding the effects of extraordinary items booked for the year, Globe's normalized net income would have been P19.4 billion, down by 15 percent.
On the other hand, core net income went up 9 percent, at P21.2 billion YoY. EBITDA went up 2 percent at P74.9 Billion, YoY while NIAT was at P23.7 billion, up 27 percent YoY.
Significantly, Globe invested an all-time high P92.8 billion in capital expenditure (capex) in 2021 and committed to spend P89.0 billion more this 2022, to continue its aggressive network expansion.
About 86 percent of last year's capex went to data-related requirements in order to serve the rising demands of Filipinos consumers who access the internet to carry on with their daily activities, maintain business operations and deliver critical services.
Globe built 1,407 new cell sites nationwide, including both 4G LTE and 5G, upgraded over 22,300 mobile sites, and installed over 2,000 5G outdoor sites and in building solutions (IBS) as of end-December of 2021. While on the fixed line front, Globe installed over 1.4 million FTTH lines, even surpassing its revised target for the year.
Its 2022 capex will fund new cell site builds, upgrade more existing sites to 4G/LTE, accelerate rollout of 5G connectivity and fast-track the fiberization of Filipino homes nationwide, and further boost the internet quality and coverage in the Philippines.
As of end-December 2021, Globe logged over 1.62 million devices in its 5G network, as it now reaches 96 percent of Metro Manila and 84 percent of key cities in Visayas and Mindanao in terms of 5G outdoor coverage.
Globe is continuously migrating its customers to 5G-enabled devices with 5G-specific data offers and budget-friendly 5G devices so that customers can experience the full power of the new technology.
Also, Globe added 5G roaming services in more countries in Europe, making it the only Philippine telco with the widest 5G coverage in the continent.
The telco's Home Broadband and Corporate Data business sustained its growth momentum, closing 2021 with consolidated service revenues of P151.5 billion, up 4 percent.
Home Broadband and Corporate Data drove the topline expansion given the increased data consumption among the Filipinos for work, education, health care, business, entertainment and essential social interactions.
Total data revenues across mobile, broadband and corporate data accounted for 80 percent of total service revenues from 76 percent last year.
Still, Typhoon Odette caused unprecedented damage in the southern and central parts of the Philippines and hampered the telco's revenue momentum in the fourth quarter, with a P2.2 Billion impact on operations.
Nevertheless, mobile data revenues posted a record P77.8 billion in 2021 from P72.4 billion last year, as more and more Filipinos accelerated their use of digital applications and services amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mobile data now accounts for 75 percent of mobile revenues from 70 percent a year ago.
Also, mobile data traffic soared to 3,733 petabytes in 2021 from 2,517 petabytes the previous year, which translates to a 48 percent growth year-on-year.
Meanwhile, mobile voice and mobile SMS revenues ended at P17.2 billion and P9.4 billion, lower year-on-year by 15 percent and 16 percent, respectively.
Home Broadband business sustained its double-digit growth, posting a 10 percent year-on-year increase from the P26.8 billion generated in 2020 to a new record-high of P29.4 billion as of end-December of 2021.
This even surpassed 2019 pre-pandemic revenues by 35 percent despite the fact that the fourth quarter performance's being partly muted by the impact of rebates given to affected customers in the Visayas and Mindanao regions due to Typhoon Odette.
“Globe showed admirable resilience in 2021 despite the pandemic and the devastation of Typhoon Odette in the country," says President and CEO Ernest L. Cu.
"We have emerged to be an outstanding digital services enabler by rapidly adapting our strategies to address both the challenges and the opportunities created by the global health crisis and natural disasters," he explained.
"As a result, our financial performance remained stable and posted healthy growth, enabling us to reinvest back into our network as customer data demands grow larger each year."
“We are optimistic that our strategy to focus on innovation, backed by our strong network, will solidify our leading position in the market. Rest assured that we will continue to revamp and upscale our services in order to secure the future of a digitally-transformed Philippines,” Cu concluded.