Telstra Group reports 11% first-half profit jump, trims 2024 forecast

Australia’s Telstra Group trimmed the upper end of its operating earnings forecast for fiscal 2024 on Thursday even as it reported an 11% jump in its first-half profit due to strong performance across its businesses.

The company now expects underlying operating earnings for the year of A$8.2 billion ($5.32 billion) to A$8.3 billion, compared with the prior range of A$8.2 billion to A$8.4 billion, citing weak performance in its network applications and services (NAS) segment.

The Melbourne-based firm’s first-half profit jumped 11.4% to A$964 million, helped by strong performance in its mobile, fixed line and infrastructure segments. Its mobile business – the biggest income contributor – reported a 3.8% growth in income to A$5.33 billion.

The country’s top telecom firm declared an interim dividend of 9 Australian cents per share, up from 8.5 Australian cents a year earlier.

Telstra also said that it was undertaking a full review of products and services under its enterprise business, with a “clear set of immediate and significant actions to address performance”.

The review is particularly focused on its NAS portfolio, which is “clearly a long way from where we need it to be”, according to the telecom firm, as the segment logs weak revenue across calling applications and professional services.

“The medium-term outlook for NAS is positive and we remain confident in our capabilities and market opportunities,” the company added.

Telstra, which is focusing heavily on reducing its costs, said it continued to “expect to achieve the large majority of our cost out ambition by the end of FY25.” Reuters