Vodafone's organic service revenue returned to growth in the mobile phone company's third quarter, with a rise of 0.4% soundly beating analysts' expectations for a fall of 0.1% and bolstering confidence in the group's outlook.
Vodafone's chief executive Nick Read said there was momentum across the business, including in its largest market Germany.
"Our good trading performance underscores our confidence in the outlook for the full year," he said today.
The world's second largest mobile operator reiterated its guidance for adjusted earnings for the year to end-March of €14.4-14.6 billion, compared with €14.5 billion for the previous year, and to generate at least €5 billion in free cash flow.
Vodafone's organic service revenue was down 0.4% in the second quarter and down 1.3% in the first quarter.
Nick Read said the listing of the group's new infrastructure company Vantage Towers was firmly on track for early this year.
Vodafone has chosen a full bank syndicate for the listing on the Frankfurt exchange in March, Reuters reported yesterday, citing people close to the matter.
Germany produced the biggest quarter-on-quarter improvement among Vodafone's major European markets, with service revenue growing by 1.0% in the quarter.
Broadband customers had upgraded to higher-speed plans during the pandemic, Vodafone said.
Analysts at JP Morgan Cazenove said Germany was a key beat in Vodafone's European markets.
Italy continued to be impacted by fierce competition in the low-value part of the mobile market, Vodafone said, while price competition in Spain was compounded by the impact of Covid-19 on roaming and visitor revenue.
Vodafone Ireland said its service revenue fell by 2.2% in the third quarter, an improvement of the drop of 6.1% in the second quarter.
The company's total fixed broadband customer base increased 5.4% year-on-year to 295,000 and Vodafone Ireland said its total mobile customer base increased by 0.6% compared to the same time the previous year.
Vodafone also said that increasing numbers of customers here took up the company's totally unlimited mobile data offering, with a 60.8% increase in data usage year on year to 40,027 terabytes.
Anne O'Leary, CEO of Vodafone Ireland, it continues to be a very challenging time for businesses right across Ireland owing to the impact of Covid-19.
"The restricted movement of people is having a significant impact on our own revenue. However, those aside, we have seen quarter-on-quarter growth that has been driven, in part by our consumer business," Anne O'Leary said.
The Vodafone Ireland CEO also said that the company's continued focus on innovation and investment in its product offering has resulted in positive year on year growth across its mobile base.
She said this follows the launch of Ireland's first Open Radio Access Network in December, describing it as "a pivotal moment in the provision of 4G mobile coverage to rural communities in Ireland".
"Looking forward, our attention remains on continuing to support and connect our customers, their families and businesses by ensuring that our award winning network is resilient and responsive and our products and services meet ever changing demands, as we work our way through to recovery," Anne O'Leary added.
