By P.R. Venkat


Singapore telecom operator Singtel suffered a loss in the second half, mainly because of impairment charges on goodwill and Australian business.

Net loss during the period ended March was 1.34 billion Singapore dollars ($992.08 million), compared with a net profit of S$1.06 billion a year earlier, Singtel said Thursday.

Operating revenue fell to S$7.10 billion compared with S$7.37 billion, Singtel.

Despite the anticipated loss in the second half, Singtel had previously assured that these results wouldn't negatively impact the payout to its shareholders.

Singtel proposed a final dividend of 9.8 Singapore cents per share for the fiscal year that ended in March. The final dividend includes a core dividend of six cents per share and a "value realization dividend" of 3.8 Singapore cents per share.

"We recognize that our market capitalization is not fully reflecting the group's value," Singtel Chief Executive Yuen Kuan Moon said.

Singtel has identified assets valued at S$6.0 billion that could be recycled over the medium term to fund growth opportunities and return excess capital to shareholders through the value realization dividend.

For the full fiscal year, the company's net profit was S$795.0 million, down 64%, and revenue fell 3.4% year over year to S$14.13 billion.


Write to P.R. Venkat at venkat.pr@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-22-24 2023ET