PCCW Reports Solid Results with Higher Full-year Dividend

PCCW Limited (the “Company”) is pleased to announce the audited consolidated results of the Company and its subsidiaries (collectively the “Group”) for the year ended December 31, 2011.
     Core revenue increased by 5{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$22,512 million; consolidated revenue including PCPD increased by 7{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$24,638 million
     Core EBITDA increased by 3{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$7,252 million; consolidated EBITDA including PCPD increased by 3{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$7,585 million
     Consolidated profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was HK$1,607 million; basic earnings per share amounted to 22.10 HK cents
     Final dividend of 10.6 HK cents per share
With growth across the core business segments, PCCW reported core revenue increase of 5{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$22,512 million for the year ended December 31, 2011. Core EBITDA was 3{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} higher year-on-year to HK$7,252 million. The strong performance lifted core business earnings by 11{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$1,588 million.
The better results were underpinned by not only the solid contribution of HKT, but also the strong growth of the Media and IT Solutions businesses, which saw EBITDA increase by 172{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} and 35{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10}, respectively, to HK$631 million and HK$383 million.
Consolidated revenue for the year increased by 7{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$24,638 million, while consolidated EBITDA increased by 3{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$7,585 million. Consolidated profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was HK$1,607 million. Basic earnings per share was 22.10 HK cents.
The board of Directors has recommended the payment of a final dividend of 10.6 HK cents per share for the year ended December 31, 2011. The total dividend for 2011 would therefore amount to 15.9 HK cents per share, or HK$1,156 million in total which is higher than the minimum dividend committed by the Company under the HKT listing proposal.
PCCW Group Managing Director, Mr. George Chan, said, “We are optimistic about the future of the Group given the solid HKT contributions and the growth potential of the Media and Solutions businesses. We will continue to exercise prudent financial management and remain committed to delivering on the dividend pledge that the Company made to shareholders upon the listing of HKT.”
Performance highlights of Media business:
     ARPU continued to grow to HK$169 across an expanding customer base which reached 1.14 million at the end of 2011
     EBITDA margin rose to 23{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} due to effective management of operating and content expenses
cont’d…
Mr. Chan said the media business continued to show significant growth momentum riding on its strong brand and premium content, its multi-screen strategy, as well as the Group’s technology capability. “In order to stay ahead of the competition, PCCW continually evolves its service to the content consumption behavior of our viewers, using technology to enhance content and multi-screen access,” he said.
Performance highlights of PCCW Solutions:
     2,800 IT professionals in Hong Kong and mainland China
     Revenue for 2011 increased by 8{e1f18614b95d3cd6e4b3128e1cd15d99b042a60a5a19c19b7a8e07e7495efa10} to HK$2,209 million
     HK$4,717 million worth of contracts secured from 700 clients at the end of 2011 – more than two times of 2011 revenue
“PCCW Solutions is well-positioned to capture the increasing demand for data center services and end-to-end integrated IT services from international enterprises moving into Hong Kong and the growth in mainland China. With a long list of satisfied customers, PCCW Solutions’ capability to offer the full spectrum of cloud computing services represents another key building block for further business development,” Mr. Chan said.
Regarding the separately listed HKT, Mr. Chan said HKT would build on its established strengths to gain a more prominent leadership position in the markets that it operates.
For further details of the 2011 annual results, please refer to the announcement that has been filed with The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited.