Ortel Communications LtdQ4 FY18
Ortel Communications Ltd Q4 FY18 Earnings Call Analysis
Revenue, margin, capex, fundraise and order book outlook from management commentary.
Price: ₹1.52Market Cap: ₹6 CrSector: Entertainment
Management growth scorecard
Revenue
Category 3
Margin
Category 3
Fundraise
N/A
Order
N/A
Capex
Yes
1 of 3 growth signals are positive — mixed outlook.
Full analysisRevenue guidance
Category 3- →Target to reach 1 million subscribers during FY18, comprising around 900,000 TV and 100,000 broadband customers.
- →ARPU (Average Revenue Per User) expected to marginally increase for both TV and broadband segments.
- →Operating leverage benefits anticipated primarily from controlled content and bandwidth costs.
- →Broadband growth faced pressure in Q3 due to competition (notably Reliance Jio) and demonetization but has normalized with positive growth from January onwards.
- →Company aims to regain earlier quarterly subscriber addition levels (~50,000 to 75,000) in upcoming quarters once funding bottlenecks are resolved.
- →Focus on improving operational efficiencies, particularly reducing bad debts and content cost per subscriber, to support sustainable growth.
- →Broadband penetration in mature markets around 20%, with potential to increase aided by greater consumer awareness and competitive positioning.
- →Overall, cautious but positive outlook with a focus on stabilizing growth and leveraging operational improvements.
Margin guidance
Category 3- →The company aims to reach 1 million subscribers in FY18, with approximately 900,000 TV and 100,000 broadband subscribers, expecting marginal ARPU increases.
- →Operating leverage is expected mainly from cost efficiencies in content and bandwidth costs; bandwidth costs increase proportionally with subscribers, programming costs semi-proportionally, others mostly inflationary.
- →Broadband growth faced temporary challenges due to competition and demonetization but returned to positive growth from January, expected to continue.
- →The company plans to focus on improving bad debts and receivables, aiming for better collections with full digitization.
- →EBITDA margins are stable; cost per subscriber has been reduced substantially.
- →No explicit earnings or EPS guidance provided, but operational efficiencies and subscriber growth are expected to drive future profitability.
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Fundraise plans
- →The company has not completed earlier debt funding, which has slowed subscriber acquisitions recently.
- →Bibhu Prasad Rath mentioned waiting for closure of debt funding to resume subscriber growth to previous levels.
- →There is no explicit mention of new fundraising plans through debt or equity in the provided transcript.
- →CAPEX guidance remains at Rs. 300 crore for going from 0.5 million to 1 million subscribers including digitization, with some spending likely to spill over to next fiscal year due to pending tie-ups.
- →No direct comment on raising fresh equity or debt beyond the current funding and CAPEX plan was noted.
Order book
- →The management has not provided an exact current orderbook or pending orders number yet.
- →Bibhu Prasad Rath mentioned that he will plan the next phase and get back later with the exact number regarding how much of the plan is yet to be executed.
- →The focus is on reaching 1 million subscribers during FY18, with around 900,000 TV and 100,000 broadband subscribers.
- →CAPEX guidance related to advancing from 0.5 million to 1 million subscribers and completing full digitization is Rs. 300 crore, which is still underway with remaining spend expected over the next few quarters.
Capex plans
Yes- →CAPEX guidance remains around Rs. 300 crore for the next phase of growth, aimed at increasing subscribers from 0.5 million to 1 million and completing full digitization.
- →The Rs. 300 crore CAPEX is planned over two years (last year and current year), but some spending may spill over to the next fiscal year due to pending tie-ups.
- →Current CAPEX includes network expansions, digital infrastructure upgrades, and related capital work in progress.
- →Broadband CAPEX involves Rs. 800 per home passed (Rs. 1,600 for combined TV+broadband) plus modem subsidies around Rs. 1,000 per subscriber.
- →Operating leverage expected due to stable programming and content costs; bandwidth costs will increase proportionally with subscriber growth.
- →The company is focusing on operational efficiencies while the growth execution plan progresses, with some CAPEX incomplete yet.
How does Ortel Communications Ltd rank vs peers in Entertainment?
Pro feature1Ortel Communications Ltd
Rev 3Mar 3
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