TPG Telecom reported a 4.5% rise in first-half 2026 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to $821 million, driven by mobile subscriber growth and cost discipline, even as home broadband customers declined.
Service revenue increased 0.5% to $2.071 billion on a pro forma basis, while underlying net profit after tax and amortisation (NPATA) surged $53 million to $70 million. The group’s EBITDA margin expanded to 33.9% from 32.1% a year earlier, supported by a 2.9% rise in gross margin to $1.329 billion.
Mobile operations were the primary growth engine, adding 64,000 net subscribers to reach 5.806 million customers. Mobile service revenue rose 3.1% to $1.224 billion, with average revenue per user (ARPU) increasing 0.7% to $35.21. Gross margin in the segment climbed 4.2% to $1.022 billion, while regional data usage surged 150% following network expansion that now covers 99% of Australia’s population via the multi-operator core network (MOCN) arrangement.
Home broadband subscriptions fell by 42,000 to 1.941 million, with NBN customers declining 41,000 to 1.527 million. Despite the decline, NBN churn improved by 1.1 percentage points, and the mix of NBN100-plus plans rose to 56% of the subscriber base. Fixed wireless average revenue per user remained steady at $50.97, with over 70% of users on 5G technology.
Operating expenses totalled $508 million, up just 0.6% year-over-year, delivering $15 million in real savings against 3.6% inflation. Cumulative cost efficiencies since fiscal 2025 reached $46 million, with a target of $100 million by fiscal 2029. Technology costs rose $11 million to $137 million, while other operating expenses fell $8 million to $196 million.
Capital management improved, with net debt to EBITDA guidance tightening to approximately 0.8 times. Bank facilities were reduced by $400 million during the half, and capex for the full-year 2026 is expected to reach $750 million, before declining to $650 million in fiscal 2027 and $550–650 million in fiscal 2028. The group maintained full-year 2026 EBITDA guidance of $1.665–1.735 billion, implying around 4% growth on a pro forma basis.
Shareholders received an interim dividend of 10 cents per share, up 11.1% from 9 cents, with 25% franking. Return on invested capital rose to 6.07% from 4.83%, while net financing costs are projected to fall by over $100 million compared to fiscal 2025 on a pro forma basis.
Customer experience metrics showed improvement, with Vodafone’s net promoter score rising by 12 points to 31, and first-contact resolution rates increasing by 10 percentage points.
