Earnings Labs

Telecom Argentina S.A. (TEO)

Q4 2013 Earnings Call· Fri, Feb 28, 2014

$11.18

-0.36%

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Transcript

Operator

Operator

Good day everyone, and welcome to the Telecom Argentina TEO Fourth Quarter 2013 Earnings Conference Call. Today’s conference is being recorded. Participating on today’s call, we have Mr. Stefano de Angelis, Chief Executive Officer; Mr. Adrian Calaza, Chief Financial Officer; Mr. Pedro Insussarry, Head of Finance and Ms. Solange Barthe Dennin, Manager of Investor Relations. At this time, I’ll turn the call over to Mr. Pedro Insussarry, Please go ahead.

Pedro Insussarry

Operator

Hi, good morning to everybody and behalf of Telecom Argentina I would like to thank you for participating in this conference call. As mentioned by Catherine, our moderator, the purpose of this call is to share with you the consolidated results of the Telecom Argentina Group that correspond to the fiscal year at 2013 and then on last December 31. We would like to remind all those that have not received our press release or presentation that you can call our Investor Relations office to request any documents or download them from the Investor Relations section of our website located at www.telecom.com.ar/investors. Additionally, this conference call is being broadcasted through the webcast feature available in subsection and can also be replayed through this same channel. Before we continue with the conference call, I would like to go over some Safe Harbor information and other details of the call, as we usually do in our traditional quarterly conference calls, we would like to caution that during the conference call and Q&A session, we may produce forward-looking statements about Telecom’s future performance, plans, strategies and targets. Such statements are subject to uncertainties that could cause Telecom’s actual results and operations to differ materially. Such uncertainties include, but are not limited to the effects of public emergency law and complementary regulations, the effects of ongoing industry and economic regulation, possible changes in demand for Telecom products and services, and the effect of marginal factors such as changes in general markets or economic conditions in legislation or in regulations. Our press release dated February 27, 2014, a copy of which is being included in the Form 6-K report to be furnished to the SEC, describes certain factors that may affect any forward-looking statements that we may produce during this session. Furthermore, we urge the…

Stefano de Angelis

Analyst

Thank you, Pedro. Good morning to everyone. Please refer to Slide 5, where we have a summary of the main achievement for the – on the mobile business we continue with interesting phase of revenue expansion of 26% year-over-year despite limited price adjustment. Moreover our 3G customer base continue to increase reaching 8.9 million clients as a consequence of our tremendous power in smartphone phase that reached 73% share of handset sellout. More outstanding is that this achieve with the reduction in handset subsidies. Regarding the fixed business you can note that we continue with the FTTx deployment to improve our valuable position and we have increased more than three times our FTTC intervention. Furthermore, it is remarkable that evolution of the corporate data business where revenues rose 31% with an acceleration in recent quarters. Is notable that the 20% broadband ARPU increased in the fourth quarter and the positive trend in broadband Netx where we have achieved the highest level of addition in the last two years. When it comes to our financials, it is important to note during this fiscal year, our net financial position increased to 5.4 billion pesos in cash. After having paid 1 billion pesos in dividend and preferred shares buyback for 0.5 billion pesos. It is worth mentioning the solid financial structure achieved due to healthy financially policies applied that is invaluable hardship in a challenging macro context. Please turn to Slide 6 for comment on the mobile business performance. As of December, our customer base totaled 20.1 million with a 6% year-on-year expansion, supported by postpaid growth with an increase of 7% versus fiscal year 2012. Meanwhile during fourth quarter, there has been monetary ARPU rose 9% to 69 pesos when compared to the same period of 2012, posted by non-voice ARPU with…

Adrian Calaza

Analyst

Thank you, Stefano. Now I’ll go through our consolidated financial figures that reflect the business performance that our CEO just described. It is multiple solid economic and financial structures that allow us to keep our business strategy in a challenging macroeconomic country. Please turn to Slide 16, where we show the evolution of consolidated revenues and operating income before depreciation and amortization. In the full year 2013, consolidated revenues reached 27.3 billion pesos, we have 23% year-on-year growth particularly fueled by the mobile services, corporate data and internet business as we mentioned before. It is important to underline that revenues coming from regulated tariff services account for just 8% of total revenues. Due not only through growth of mobile and broadband businesses but also because of we continue to be affected since 2001 by decrease of basic voice tariff. Operating income before depreciation and amortization totaled 7.6 billion pesos in 2013 representing 27% of revenues and growing by 15% year-on-year, moreover fourth quarter growth was somehow impacted by fixed revenues and cost effect as we will see in next slide. So in Slide 17, we layout the evolution of growth in operating income before depreciation and amortization, so the fourth quarter of 2013, when compared with the growth of the third quarter 2013, and the fact is that affected the evolution of its growth. As we deeply explained before specific events affected the mobile ARPU in the fourth quarter of 2013, and is represented approximately 10 percentage point in the growth rate of the fourth quarter, but it is necessary to repeat that most of them are non – recurring. Moreover, during the fourth quarter of 2013, we experienced acceleration in the level of commercial activity when compared to one year before when the level of handset sellout, as you…

Operator

Operator

(Operator Instructions). We will go first to Michel Morin of Morgan Stanley. Michel Morin – Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC: Yes, thank you, good morning, everyone. And obviously there has been more volatility in the macro and currency markets since the beginning of this year, so I was hoping that perhaps you could update us on what you have seeing year-to-date in terms of the impact of using these on your fundamentals? Is there has been any impact? And then separate to that, if you can help us understand what kind of impact we should anticipate from moving to the first second billing? Which I understand happened towards the end of the last year? So this will be also the first quarter was in place. Thank you.

Stefano de Angelis

Analyst

Hello, Mike, Stefano de Angelis. I step on the second question. First of all, the second billing is something that we were let me say expecting by say almost two years? So we were providing our commercial offer in order to face something that we were expecting then you say not in the way that happened in December, it was announced that surprised the industry but something that we were expecting along 2014. In this sense, you have to remember that the impact is limited by this, let me say set up fee that represent 30 seconds of the [exit embarrass], so it is not a full impact of the first, second billing methodology. In this sense, let me say we do expect a significant impact taking into account that first of all the minute of usage of our prepaid customers that this – the one that our full impacted by the second billing is low when compared to today, one does data and postpaid that are secured by the tax. Let me say that they have been the bonder of way of acquiring our services. Second, we may have expected elasticity. Third, we were just moving into tax of minutes, effects of daily, unlimited call or net, so we do not expect significant impact, and we do not think that this going to affect our revenues goal expectation along 2014. Regarding the impact of the macroeconomic turmoil. First of all, as Adrian was presenting in his speech, we have let me say a zero net balance in our P&L. We got today US dollar, if we eliminate the handset, that’s our US dollar based in the cost and that the price always follow the US dollar trend, if we see the OpEx and the revenues, we have let me…

Stefano de Angelis

Analyst

Listen, I give you a short term view because honestly it is very difficult at this moment to have a medium and long term view on this matter. In the short term, what if happen and what may happen we can expect a reduction – for example in the number of handsets today because older market is reducing the financing of the handsets and electrical devices. If this let me say may have limited the impact and indirectly in our smartphone penetration and data users penetration, but we do not expect a negative impact on the global financial of Telecom Argentina. On the other hand, looking at January and February, we are not seeing any impact in terms of the consumption, and in this sense in the short term, we do not expect a negative impact coming from the reduction of the consumption of our customer, related especially to the mobile service. Michel Morin – Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC: Okay, thank you very much.

Operator

Operator

And our next question will come from Rodrigo Villanueva, Merrill Lynch. Rodrigo Villanueva Bravo – Merrill Lynch: Thank you, good morning. And I was wondering if you could share with us any update regarding the transaction of Telecom Italia with impact for consolidated Telecom Argentina? Has there been any change in the operations of Telecom Argentina? And I also wanted to ask if is there any pay along right figured by this acquisition that would be my first question.

Stefano de Angelis

Analyst

First, we may expect the evolution to be close in the next let me say three to six months but it is an expectation, it is difficult for us to answer something that is not affecting Telecom Argentina, is entirely manage Telecom Argentina, so we signed a filing in December and we are expecting that the process would be completed in the next plan. Okay, in terms of the impact for Telecom Argentina, I can say that the impact will be approximate to zero because if we look at the declaration of that multiple reinforce, its intention to sustain the investment, the capital expense towards the Telecom Argentina, yet we are firmed that in the Fintex policies to maintain the managers of the company, so in the sense we do not see any discontinuation of the present policies offering and level of investment of the company. On the contrary, we may expect a relief in the regulatory context because we have not to forget that today we are limited by the Telco electronic situation and in order to – even in sometimes of bureaucratic activities that we have to firm as a company, we have lot of committee that if needed in order to crusade the independence of Telecom Argentina from Telefonica, all these will be a waste with a closing of the [ordination] and then regarding it will take longer – honestly, I don’t know, and the HDA is a public filing on this associate so you may see what this published and you may find information you need. Rodrigo Villanueva Bravo – Merrill Lynch: Okay, thank you very much, very clear. And my next question is regarding EBITDA margin. And we have seen EBITDA margin declining by an average of 200 basis points for the last several years. I was wondering if around 27.5% – 28%, you would think these levels are sustainable going forward. Or we should continue to see an erosion of margins due to inflationary pressures?

Adrian Calaza

Analyst

Rodrigo, hi, I am Adrian, well, yes this last year we saw margin take dig around 200 basis points. This is a matter of inflation and we are able to not just revenues coming from volumes but especially from prices at the same pace of inflation. This last year even with limited price adjustments, we manage to increase the revenues in a very significant level, almost matching inflation, but again some cost affected more than this 33% especially our labor cost related. It’s something that we try to manage, we will try to maintain the actual level but it depends a lot on the – for example on the union bargaining this next month and also some other buyable of the macro context. So we cannot assure you that we will maintain the actual level, so we will try to make our best effort in order to achieve it. Rodrigo Villanueva Bravo – Merrill Lynch: Understood, thank you very much, Adrian.

Operator

Operator

(Operator Instructions). We will go next to Santiago Petri, Franklin Resources. Santiago Petri – Franklin Resources: [Question inaudible]

Stefano de Angelis

Analyst

No, we are not performing any adjustment on our balance sheet. It is not allowed under the actual rules in Argentina, but even more under IFRS you need to have an accumulated a 100% in three years in order to be allowed to adjust the balance sheet.

Operator

Operator

And with that it does appear that we had no further questions on line, the phone line. We would like now to turn the conference back over to our speakers for any additional or closing comments.

Stefano de Angelis

Analyst

Okay, thank you everybody for participating in this call and feel free to contact us for any additional questions you may have. And everybody have good day and weekend. Plus those in Latin countries, they will enjoy the carnival holiday. So good day to everybody. Bye, bye.

Operator

Operator

And with that ladies and gentlemen, that does concludes today’s conference call. We like to thank you again for your participation.