Analysts sing the same tune for Singtel following soft 1Q results

Analysts are overall bullish on Singtel despite the telco reporting a 24% y-o-y decline in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) to $897 million in its latest 1Q21 business update.

This is after including some $17 million of Jobs Support Scheme credits from the Singapore government. The fall in earnings was mainly a result of a 13.9% y-o-y decline in operating revenue to $3.54 billion, mainly due to “challenging market conditions” due to the Covid-19-induced shutdowns across Singapore and Australia.

The lower numbers were attributed to travel and movement restrictions, lower footfall in retail stores, and a general dampening in consumer and business spending amid the global economic slowdown.