Fiber internet giant Converge ICT Solutions, founded by Dennis Anthony Uy and Grace Uy, saw a strong start to the year, with profits jumping 17.5 percent to over P2.6 billion during the first quarter on better-than-expected growth.
Total revenues rose 10.4 percent to P9.5 billion amid an increase in subscribers to 2.25 million from January to March, a stock exchange filing on Tuesday showed.
Growing subscribers, margins
Its core FiberX segment contributed about 44 percent to net subscriber additions of 124,793, marking the fastest growth in more than two years.
It also saw strong growth in more affordable offerings.
Converge said the company’s robust business performance pushed up the income margin to 26.7 percent from 25.1 percent while return on invested capital rose to 17.4 percent from 16.3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2023.
Above target residential revenues
Converge said residential earnings climbed 10.4 percent to P8.2 billion as subscribers increased.
The enterprise segment also recorded gains of 10.5 percent to P1.4 billion. The small and medium-sized subsegment continued to drive gains with a growth of 31 percent.
Welcoming new CFO
Converge president and co-founder Grace Uy welcomed former Converge consultant Robert Yu as chief financial officer.
“We’re glad to welcome Robert back to Converge. We’re confident that his breadth of experience in corporate financial planning and strategizing will keep Converge on solid financial footing and will be a strong addition to the leadership team,” she said in a statement.
Prudent growth
Yu, an international private equity and corporate finance veteran, pledged to take Converge “to the next phase of its evolution as a company, without taking any undue risks”.
“The short-term plan is to make sure that all our upcoming investments are prudently funded,
striking a balance of reinvesting internally generated cash flow and utilizing external sources of funds,” Yu said.
“Over the long-term, Converge will be in a solid financial position that rewards all stakeholders,” he added.
