SINGAPORE (Feb 20): StarHub delivered on its guidance to pay a 2.25 cents per share dividend for 4QFY2019, bringing its full year payout to nine cents.
The company intends to maintain the same payout for the coming FY2020, signalling its ability and willingness to reward shareholders, even though it struggles to cut costs and grow new business in a competitive market.
StarHub on Feb 20 reported that earnings for 4QFY19 more than doubled by 115.6% y-o-y to $33.3 million. Revenue in the same period was down 1.8% y-o-y to $608.4 million.
For the full year, earnings dropped by 10.9% y-o-y to $ 178.6 million, while revenue of $2.33 billion was 1.3% lower compared to FY2018.
For the past few years, StarHub has suffered from stiffer competition, higher costs, and revenue that isn’t growing. In late 2018, it launched a major restructuring programme, to cut $210 million off its costs base and according to the company, it has already achieved two thirds of this target.
“Despite ever increasing competition, our Consumer business has stabilised its quarter-on-quarter revenues for the first time following years of decline,” says StarHub CEO Peter Kaliaropoulos.
While the company suffered year-on-year drop in revenue for it various two main businesses mobile and pay TV, the revenue increased sequentially between 4QFY2019 and 3QFY2019.
StarHub’s new growth driver is its nascent cybersecurity business. Revenue for FY2019 increased 79.1% y-o-y, as it began consolidating its stake in an entity called Ensign for the first year.
On Feb 17, StarHub put in a joint bid with M1 for a 5G license that the Singapore government is regulating. The results of the bidding will be known in the middle of the year.
On Feb 20, StarHub shares closed at $1.50, down a cent.
