KUALA LUMPUR: CelcomDigi Bhd is on course for sustained profitability as it reported an improved first quarter in 2025, alongside progress in its integration and transformation initiatives.

“We are pleased to report an encouraging start to 2025, with our first quarter performance delivering growth in revenue, earnings before interest and tax, and profit after tax. This reflects the continued strength of our core business and disciplined execution of our strategic priorities," said CEO Datuk Idham Nawawi in a statement.

In the first quarter ended March 31, 2025, CelcomDigi posted a net profit of RM383.78mil, up from RM376.46mil in the year-ago quarter, which translated to an earnings per share of 3.27 sen from 3.21 sen previously.

The telco reported quarterly revenue of RM3.21bil, an improvement from RM3.17bil in 1QFY24.

The board of directors declared a first interim dividend of 3.7 sen per share, with entitlement date on June 13, 2025, and payable on June 30, 2025.

According to the group, continued revenue growth in its postpaid, home and fibre and value-added services segments partialy offset the impact from expected softer prepaid revenue, interconnect and 2024 audit adjustments.

Service revenue in 1QFY25 was RM2.66bil, representing a slight decline of 1.2% year-on-year (y-o-y).

Quarterly postpaid revenue rose 3.2% y-o-y to RM1.07bil on the back of an increase of 340,000 subscribers over the same period to 5.84 million subscribers.

The prepaid segment achieved revenue of RM1.06bil, a 5.7% decline over the same quarter in 2024, while the number of subscribers was seen stabilising with an increase of 113,000 subscribers from the fourth quarter of 2024 to 12.98 million.

The home and fibre segment recorded 48.1% y-o-y revenue growth to RM55mil. The number of subscribers leapt 65.3% y-o-y to 205,000.

According to CelcomDigi, its network integration and modernisation efforts are well underway with a completion rate of about 80% as at end-March 2025.

The company continued to ramp up IT consolidation activities, with 28 out of over 50 systems integrated to date, with a target of achieving approximately 75% of systems integrated by year-end.

CelcomDigi’s retail transformation also continued to advance, with over 50 new digital-concept stores launched to date, resulting in higher sales productivity and enhanced customer engagements.

The telco is now embarking on the next phase of transforming more than 300 exclusive partner stores.

As a flow-through of cost efficiencies from these integration initiatives, the company said it remains on track to deliver steady-state annualised cost savings of RM700 to RM800mil post-2027.