BT Group Fiscal Year 2022 Pretax Profit Rose; Finalizes Sports JV With Warner Bros. Discovery -- Update

By Kyle Morris

BT Group PLC said Thursday that pretax profit for fiscal 2022 rose and that it has finalized the sports joint venture in the U.K. and Ireland with Warner Bros. Discovery.

The U.K. telecommunications group said that as part of the 50-50 sports JV it will receive 93 million pounds ($113.9 million) from Warner Bros. Discovery and up to around GBP540 million by way of an earn-out, subject to certain conditions. As part of the agreement the operating businesses of BT Sport will be transferred to Warner Bros. Discovery.

The joint venture will combine BT Sport and Eurosport UK, with a portfolio including rights to the UEFA Champions League, the Premier League, UFC, the Olympic Games, tennis grand slams and the winter sports World Cup season.

A new longer-term reciprocal channel supply deal, going beyond 2030, has also been agreed with Sky, it said.

Additionally, the company reported its results for fiscal 2022, including pretax profit for the year ended March 31 of GBP1.96 billion compared with GBP1.80 billion for fiscal 2021. Revenue was GBP20.85 billion compared with GBP21.33 billion a year earlier, reflecting a decline in enterprise and global. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization--which strips out exceptional and other one-off items--was GBP7.6 billion, it said, up 2%.

Analysts expected BT to report fiscal 2022 revenue at GBP20.88 billion and pretax profit of GBP2.08 billion, according to consensus estimates provided by FactSet.

Following completion of the sports JV, expected by the end of 2022, the company expects group revenue to reduce by GBP500 million to GBP600 million a year relative to fiscal 2022. The full impact on outlook metrics will be confirmed following completion, it said.

BT also said it is extending the cost savings target of GBP2 billion by the end of fiscal 2024 to GBP2.5 billion by the end of fiscal 2025. Goss annualized cost savings totaling GBP1.5 billion have now been achieved, it said.

For fiscal 2023, the company sees adjusted revenue to grow year-on-year and adjusted Ebitda of at least GBP7.9 billion.

The company declared a final dividend of 5.39 pence a share, bringing the full-year payout to 7.70 pence a share.

"While the economic outlook remains challenging, we're continuing to invest for the future and I am confident that BT Group is on the right track," Chief Executive Philip Jansen said.

Shares in BT at 0713 GMT were up 4.05 pence, or 2.3%, at 180.50 pence.

Write to Kyle Morris at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

May 12, 2022 03:29 ET (07:29 GMT)

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