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Bharti Airtel has reported a 33.5% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit for the January-March quarter of FY26, weighed down by one-time regulatory charges and a higher base from the previous year.
The telecom operator posted a net profit of Rs. 7,325 crore for the quarter, below Bloomberg’s estimate of Rs. 7,690 crore. Sequentially, profit rose 10.5% from Rs. 6,631 crore in the December quarter.
The sharp decline came after Airtel booked a tax credit of Rs. 2,892 crore in the year-ago period. During the March quarter, the company also recognized a charge of Rs. 3,161 crore linked to regulatory and government levies.
Revenue from operations rose 15.7% year-on-year to Rs. 55,383 crore, while quarterly revenue increased 2.6%.
Growth during the quarter came from Airtel’s mobile services, enterprise business, home broadband segment, and Africa operations. The company also benefited from premiumization, higher data usage, and upgrades from 2G users to 4G and 5G services.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda) rose 16.9% year-on-year to Rs. 32,038 crore.
Gopal Vittal, executive vice chairman and managing director of Airtel, said the company added 5.8 million smartphone customers and 0.8 million postpaid users during the quarter, despite having two fewer days than the previous quarter.
Vittal said that Airtel remains focused on retaining quality customers and premiumizing its portfolio. He added that further tariff repair remained necessary to support long-term investments and growth.
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Airtel’s average revenue per user (ARPU) fell sequentially to Rs. 257 from Rs. 259 in the previous quarter. Every year, Arpu rose from Rs. 245.
The decline reflected the absence of major tariff hikes and fewer operating days during the quarter. Rival Reliance Jio also reported flat sequential ARPU growth recently.
Airtel recently raised the price of one of its long-validity prepaid plans, a move analysts view as an early signal of broader tariff hikes ahead.
The company’s board recommended a final dividend of Rs. 24 per share. Airtel shares closed 1.4% higher at Rs. 1,781.2 on the NSE before the earnings announcement.
