StarHub Q1 net profit tumbles 81.3% to S$5.9 million as consumer business slides across the board

[SINGAPORE] StarHub reported a net profit of S$5.9 million for its first quarter ended Mar 31, down 81.3 per cent from S$31.8 million in the year-ago period.

Total revenue for the three months declined 6.1 per cent to S$507.3 million from S$540.5 million in Q1 2025, the group said on Thursday (May 7).

The consumer business logged declines across the board, as revenue fell 10 per cent to S$228.6 million for the quarter, from S$254 million previously.

This was led by the mobile segment, which posted a 10.9 per cent decline in revenue to S$124 million for Q1 2026, from S$139.2 million in the year-ago period.

The mobile segment’s lower revenue was due to softer roaming alongside usage revenues for value-added service and SMS. Subscriptions fell to 2.2 million from 2.4 million in Q1 2025, while the average revenue per user (ARPU) was stable on the year at S$21.

Meanwhile, the broadband segment’s revenue declined 8.7 per cent on the year to S$58.8 million from S$64.4 million, mainly due to lower subscription revenue. Subscriptions dropped to around 571,000 from 577,000 in Q1 2025, as ARPU fell to S$33 from S$36.

Revenue for the enterprise business fell 4.8 per cent to S$139.4 million, from S$146.5 million in the previous corresponding period, due to the timing of project recognitions from the managed services segment, which posted a 10.8 per cent drop in revenue to S$69.8 million from S$78.3 million.

This was partially offset by higher enterprise connectivity and carrier and voice revenues. The former posted a 1.7 per cent year-on-year (yoy) increase in revenue for Q1 and the latter recorded 2.6 per cent higher revenue.

Despite revenue declines, the order book for the enterprise business grew more than 50 per cent on the year amid demand for digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence.

Cybersecurity services revenue rose 22.4 per cent yoy in Q1, to S$77.7 million from S$63.5 million, due to project recognition timings.

The top-line declines led to a 22.5 per cent slide in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) to S$77.7 million, from S$100.2 million previously – alongside higher depreciation and amortisation and net finance costs, but was partially offset by lower tax expense.

The telco said Ebitda service margins fell 4.1 percentage points to 16.5 per cent.

The group added that it was identifying areas for additional cost savings, as part of cost structure rightsizing.

StarHub’s free cash flow stood at S$26.6 million, with a cash position of S$867.2 million and a net-debt-to-Ebitda ratio of 2.09 times. Its fixed rate debt was around 80 per cent of total debt.

“Significantly below” expectations

DBS Group Research maintained its “fully valued” rating for StarHub and kept its S$0.94 target price unchanged, as the telco’s earnings came in “significantly below” consensus expectations of S$10.6 million.

In a Thursday report, DBS Group Research analyst Sachin Mittal highlighted StarHub’s “muted” 2026 outlook, with its FY2026 Ebitda forecasts at 75 to 80 per cent of FY2025 levels.

Similarly, Citigroup on Thursday noted that StarHub’s results “disappointed” amid weak revenue across its consumer segment. The bank reiterated its “neutral” rating for StarHub and assigned it a S$1.14 target price.

“Downside, however, could be contained by its firm (roughly) 6 per cent yield offer which remains well supported by its cash position,” said Citi analysts Arthur Pineda and Luis Hilado.

The counter ended Thursday flat at S$1.01.