stc has announced the company’s annual consolidated financial results for the period ending at 31 December 2021:
- Revenues for the year 2021 reached SR 63,417m with an increase of 7.57% compared to year 2020.
- Operating Profit for the year 2021 reached to SR 13,128m with an increase of 3.12% compared to the year 2020.
- Earnings before Interest, Taxes, Zakat, Depreciation and Amortization (EBITDA) for the year 2021 reached to SR 22,841m with an increase of 3.40% compared to the year 2020.
- Net Profit for the year 2021 reached to SR 11,311m with an increase of 2.87% compared to the year 2020.
In accordance with the approved dividend policy for three years starting from the 4th quarter 2021, which was announced on 27 September 2021, and has been ratified during the Ordinary General Assembly Meeting on November 30th 2021, stc will distribute a total of SR 1,997.1 million in cash dividend for Q4 2021, representing SR 1 per share. The eligibility of dividends shall be for the shareholders at the close of trading on Sunday 27/02/2022 corresponding to 26/07/1443 H and as per the registered shareholders in the register of The Securities Depository Center Company at the end of the 2nd trading day following the eligibility date. Dividend distribution date will be on 17/03/2022 corresponding to 14/08/1443H.
Commenting on these results, Eng. Olayan Mohammed Alwetaid, stc Group CEO, stated that the positive results achieved by the company for the year 2021 came in line with our expectations, as the company was able to grow its top line by 7.6% compared to the previous year. This was driven by the strong performance witnessed in the Enterprise business unit, which was able to grow its revenues by 20.9%, benefiting from the company’s ability to accommodate the strong demand from the public and private sectors for Enterprise Business Unit’s services and products. The Wholesale Business Unit continued its positive contribution to the company’s financial results, as it achieved a growth of 2.9%, thru leveraging stc’s infrastructure investments to grow the company’s hubbing services. The Residential Segment also achieved a growth in its revenues, with an increase of 10.5%, which supported the Consumer Business Unit’s financial performance, this is primarily due to an increase in FTTH and fixed wireless access subscribers by 10.3% and 21.7%, respectively. Moreover, the revenue growth witnessed in stc’s subsidiaries also contributed positively to the company’s financial results.
In line with Saudi Vision 2030, the company will continue its national role and contributions towards achieving the vision by investing in the digitization of the economy, strengthening its assets, diversifying its services, developing commercial and operational capabilities, and maintaining its ICT leadership in the region. In achieving its “DARE” strategy, the company will continue to invest in new business trends and execute its ambitious plans to expand in telecommunications and infrastructure, in addition to developing new platforms such as IoT, cloud, cybersecurity, data analytics, digital services and applications, data center hosting services, in addition to regional and international connectivity.
Alwetaid went on to say that the year 2021 was full of challenges and successes for stc group. The company, through its digital payments company (stc pay), was able to obtain the approval of the Council of Ministers for stc pay to become one of the first digital banks in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Also, we have established and launched the Advanced Technology and Cybersecurity Company (sirar by stc); a new company dedicated to providing advanced cybersecurity services and solutions to the business sector. Furthermore, the company launched (stcplay) platform to lead the transformation in the gaming and E-sports sector and to act as a digital enabler for the gaming sector in the KSA and the Middle East by providing distinctive experiences and high-quality services to players and service providers. During the year, we have also witnessed the successful listing of (solutions by stc) in the Saudi Stock Exchange, Tadawul, which represents a qualitative and important leap in supporting companies working in the field of communications and information technology.
Recently, The Public Investment Fund and stc group, announced the successful completion of the secondary public offering. 120 million shares representing 6.0% of stc’s share capital were sold to local and international institutional investors and retail investors by way of a secondary public offering, the first of its kind in the Saudi capital market. The total offering size reached SAR 12 billion, which makes it the largest secondary public offering in EMEA in the last three years.
Eng. Alwetaid also pointed out that stc surpassed its counterparts in the region to become the most valuable brand in the telecommunications sector for the second year in a row, according to Brand Finance. The company celebrated being the region’s fastest-growing brand, up an impressive 16% to US$ 10.6 billion in 2021 with an increase in brand value by 32% over the past two years.
Finally, stc is continuing its data centers project Phase 3, which will be the biggest project of data center construction across the region after the completion of Phases 1 and 2. The new phase of constructing its next-generation cloud-enabled Data Centers aims to expand presence and capacity, accelerate the implementation of the Kingdom’s digital transformation objectives, and provide world-class seamless data distribution with energy optimization solutions which is in line with the environmental sustainability goals of Saudi Arabia. The Tier III enhanced data center is a planned IT power with a maximum capacity of 125 MW, in an area of more than 180,000 sqm. As part of Phase 3, the company recently launched Jeddah Data Center, which is a continuation of the company’s strategic plan to become the first regional digital center for data centers. This is part of stc’s ambition and comprehensive strategy to provide the best digital and telecom services in the region.
