By Alkman Granitsas
ATHENS--Greek telephone operator Hellenic Telecoms (HTO.AT) said
Thursday it would reinstate dividend payments to shareholders for
the first time in four years amid signs that some of its core
operations were steadying after years of decline.
In its fourth quarter earnings statement, the company, also
known by its Greek acronym OTE, said it had swung to a net profit
of 73.2 million euros ($83 million) compared with EUR188.7 million
loss a year earlier. Pre-tax profits--as measured by earnings
before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization--were also
higher, more than doubling in the October to December quarter to
EUR344.4 million.
Revenue, however, was lower, falling to EUR1.01 billion in the
quarter, down 2.8% from EUR1.04 billion a year earlier.
Faced with stiff competition and Greece's protracted recession,
OTE has seen revenues in both its domestic fixed-line and mobile
operations decline for years. In response, it has enriched its
product offering with high-speed Internet and pay-TV offerings that
have helped stem some of that decline.
The Greek fixed-line operations reported their first positive
quarter in seven years, according to Chairman and Chief Executive
Officer Michael Tsamaz. Were it not for weak mobile
revenues--particularly from the company's Romanian
subsidiary--overall group revenue would have been flat.
Years of cost cutting, including several waves of early
retirement schemes to shed staff, have also helped.
"With a leaner organization and a healthier financial structure,
our profitability improved sharply, at both Ebitda and bottom-line
levels," said Mr. Tsamaz. "Based on the improved performance across
the board, we have decided to resume payment of an annual dividend
after a four-year hiatus."
OTE is a unit of Germany telephone giant Deutsche Telekom
(DTE.XE) that owns a controlling stake in the company. Earlier
Thursday, DT reported net losses of EUR110 million in the fourth
quarter-down sharply from a year earlier--thanks to a strong U.S.
performance and stable growth in Germany.
Write to Alkman Granitsas at alkman.granitsas@wsj.com