Telecommunications behemoth BT Group has reported a 10 per cent fall in its pre-tax profit, alongside a three per cent dip in adjusted revenue, while maintaining that it is 'on track' to meet full-year guidance.
In a trading update for the quarter ending 30 June, the FTSE 100 firm revealed to shareholders that its pre-tax profit had fallen by 10 per cent to £468m, "primarily due to an increase in net finance costs and depreciation and amortisation," as reported by .
The company's reported and adjusted revenue saw a year-on-year decrease of three per cent to £4.9bn, "mainly due to weaker handset sales in consumer and continued challenging international trading."
BT's adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) experienced a slight drop of one per cent to £2.1bn, attributed to "strong cost transformation."
From a business standpoint, the company saw growth in its consumer customer base during the quarter, with an increase of 11,000 in broadband base and 41,000 in postpaid mobile base.
However, the average revenue per user for consumer broadband fell by two per cent year-on-year to £41.9, while the postpaid mobile average revenue per user remained broadly flat at £19.4 year-on-year. The group stated it continues "to expect a similar seasonal growth pattern as FY25."
Fibre boost, and finance chief shake up
In terms of fibre boost and changes in financial leadership, BT informed shareholders of a record customer demand for Openreach fibre to the premises, with net adds up 46 per cent year-on-year to 566,000. Its total premises connected reached 7.1m, increasing its market-leading take up rate to 37 per cent.
However, Openreach's broadband lines declined by 169,000, "driven by losses to competitors and a weaker broadband market." Nevertheless, the group's full-year expectations remain unaltered.
This follows the company reporting pre-tax profits of £1.3bn for the year ending March, representing a 12 per cent rise, which Chief Executive Allison Kirkby credited to "strong cost control and a step-up in focus and transformation" after achieving £900m in annualised cost reductions.
Reflecting on the results, Kirkby remarked: "BT has had a solid start to the year, with our full fibre broadband now reaching more than 19m homes and businesses and our 5G network available to over 87 per cent of the º£½ÇÊÓƵ population."
Consequently, the FTSE 100 firm announced a final dividend of 5.76p per share in May, taking its full-year dividend to 8.16p, representing a two per cent rise on the prior year.
"We're seeing strong customer demand for our next-generation broadband and mobile connectivity across all our brands, with record Openreach fibre take-up again this quarter. And we're delivering on our transformation, as we radically simplify our business while improving customer experience."
"BT is investing more than anyone else in the nation's networks, we're connecting customers faster, and we're on track to deliver our targets for this year, next year, and the end of the decade – creating a better BT, for all of us," she added. In addition to its quarterly results, BT has revealed that Group Chief Financial Officer Simon Lowth is set to retire.
Patricia Cobian, currently the Finance Chief at Virgin Media O2, has been named as his successor and is expected to join the company in mid-2026.
