Bharti Airtel shares gain over 3 pc

Shares of Bharti Airtel on Wednesday climbed over 3 per cent after the company's consolidated revenue rose by 8.5 per cent in December quarter.

The scrip gained 2.77 per cent to close at Rs 533.50 on the BSE. During the trade, it rose 3.59 per cent to Rs 537.75 -- its 52-week high.

On the NSE, it climbed 3.39 per cent to close at Rs 536.50.

In traded volume terms, 10.83 lakh shares were traded on the BSE and over 3 crore shares on the NSE during the day.

Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Tuesday posted a consolidated loss of Rs 1,035 crore for the three months ended December 31, 2019, as the AGR-hit telco provisioned for interest component of its statutory dues.

December Q3 scorecard marked the third straight quarter of losses for the company, which had logged a net profit of Rs 86 crore a year ago. The company also said the previously reported material uncertainty on the group's ability to continue as a going concern "no longer exists" after the recent Rs 21,502 crore fund raising by it.

For December quarter, Airtel's consolidated revenues came in at Rs 21,947 crore, up 8.5 per cent over the same period previous year. The India revenues for Q3 FY20 stood at Rs 15,797 crore, 7 per cent higher over same period previous year, while Africa revenues were up 14.2 per cent.

The company said that consolidated mobile data traffic on network grew 73 per cent year-on-year. The company logged the "highest ever" 4G subscriber additions during the quarter at about 21 million, and benefited from up to 50 per cent tariff hike - call and data charges - it had announced in early December.

Its average realisation from subscribers (Average Revenue Per User or ARPU) improved to Rs 135 in December from Rs 128 in the previous sequential quarter.