TalkTalk profits soar as telecoms giant continues cyber attack recovery
TalkTalk’s earnings soared in the six months to September, despite total revenue falling 1.1 per cent.
The figures
Turnover for the half-year to 30 September came in at £902m, down from £912m in the same period last year.
But earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) were up 44 per cent to £130m.
Read more: TalkTalk slapped with record fine over cyber attack
The telecoms company, which also announced a 5.29p interim dividend, said it expected full-year profits to top last year.
Why it’s interesting
It’s now more than a year since TalkTalk was devastated by a cyber attack, which affected 157,000 customers.
Today, chief executive Dido Harding emphasised the company’s “relentless focus on looking after our existing customers and keeping up the pace across a wide range of operational improvements to make TalkTalk simpler and better for customers”.
She said the company has witnessed a “significant” improvement over the last year in churn and customer satisfaction.
Read more: TalkTalk is jumping before it's pushed, ditching separate line rental fees
What the company said
Harding added:
We are delighted with the initial response to our fixed low price plans, which offer customers simple, affordable and fair prices in an increasingly confusing market place.
By allowing our existing customers to switch to these new plans, we are delivering a value for money proposition to our customer base that is genuinely unique in the market, and are laying the foundations for a fundamental transformation of the TalkTalk brand.
This combined with our ongoing focus on making TalkTalk simpler will drive a return to retail subscriber and revenue growth in full-year 2018, supporting our confidence in the longer term prospects for the business.