In the third quarter of 2023, the consolidated revenues of OTE Group decreased by 2.6% and amounted to €881.0 million, as announced by the group.

• Continuing growth in Greek profitability; Adj. EBITDA (AL) up 0.7%

• Total Revenues in Greece down 2.2% on lower wholesale and timing of ICT contracts

o Positive trajectory in postpaid and prepaid topline continues; Improving trends in Fixed Retail

Services, Broadband and TV up

o Solid momentum in operational KPIs— FTTH footprint at 1.15mn homes passed, utilization rate at

19%, total Fiber (FTTx) base up 7%

• Adjusted Group EBITDA (AL) down 1.5%, impacted by Romania; margin up 40bp

Message from the Chairman & CEO, Michael Tsamaz:

“We achieved another solid quarter in Greece, making good progress in the areas that will sustain our future growth and profitability. In a very competitive marketplace, we were able to register material subscriber growth in broadband, TV, and postpaid mobile, leveraging our brand’s strong commitment to superior service across the board. These attributes are a clear source of optimism. Our FTTH development is also making headway at a steady pace, in terms of deployment as well as customer additions, and we are hopeful that new public support will encourage these trends.

We are sustaining cost-containment efforts across the board, in addition to our recent early retirement scheme. These initiatives are paying off, and we are reporting higher Greek EBITDA and a substantial margin.

We enter the last stretch of 2023 in good shape to pursue the implementation of our winning strategy and prepare for next year.”

Outlook

Heightened geopolitical challenges and increasing uncertainties may adversely impact the macroeconomic environment. In particular, higher interest rates, inflation and energy price risks may negatively impact consumer spending.

While the competitive environment in Greece remains intense, OTE is defending its market positions and securing its market share, as it continues to benefit from its ongoing investment in advanced network infrastructure in both fixed and mobile. OTE is leveraging its significant advance over its competition in terms of FTTH rollout, 5G coverage, and network performance to drive ongoing subscriber additions and upgrades.

OTE intends to pursue its investment strategy, with particular focus on its highly competitive deployment of FTTH and 5G, and will continue to benefit from its best-in-class networks, recognized customer excellence, and superior brand attributes. Ongoing takeup of FTTH services may be further supported by upcoming government subsidy schemes in the course of 2024.

OTE has recently taken several initiatives aimed at enhancing the value of its proposition, safeguarding its future growth and solid financial performance in its home market. At the same time and despite occasional delays as evidenced this quarter, OTE anticipates continued solid performance from its ICT business.

OTE acts as one of the major Systems Integrators for businesses and the public sector in Greece and the EU, supported by the ongoing deployment of the EU Recovery and Resilience Fund.

In Greece, for full year 2023, OTE expects Adjusted EBITDA (AL) growth in line with the level achieved in the first nine months, supported by cost efficiency initiatives, such as personnel and lower energy costs.

OTE has contracted a large part of its energy supplies for 2024, raising visibility over future spending, albeit at higher prices compared to its previous contract. At Group level, operations should remain impacted by challenging conditions in Romania.

OTE management expects 2023 Free Cash Flow of approximately €500mn while Group Capex should reach approximately €620mn, a 3% reduction from prior guidance of €640mn mainly due to timing of TV content payments and minor delays in FTTH rollout due to challenging weather conditions during the past months.

Total 2023 Shareholder Remuneration should reach approximately €425mn, corresponding to a €250mn cash dividend and a share buyback program of approximately €175mn. The final dividend of €0.58878 per share was paid out on July 11, 2023.

As of the date of this release, the Company has disbursed 88% of the amount earmarked for its total 2023 share buyback program. 

Fixed Segment

OTE is making further progress in the broadband market, where its attractive offering and customer upgrades led to another increase in total broadband subscribers, to 2,346k. OTE’s total broadband base rose by 2.1% year-on-year, while broadband penetration on total fixed lines stood at 87%, up from 85% a year earlier.

OTE posted another quarter of positive net additions, at 4k, in a traditionally low-contribution quarter, capturing the bulk of estimated market net adds.

OTE expands its fiber network and upgrades its customer offering. As a result, the total number of its fiber (FTTx) subscribers increased by 7% year-on-year, with 11k net additions in the quarter. The total number of fiber (FTTx) subscribers stood at 1,526k, while FTTx penetration on the total broadband base stood at 65%.

Speeds of 100Μbps or higher continue to gain traction, reaching 46% of total FTTx connections.