Deutsche Telekom 3Q Net Profit Up 7.2%, Keeps 2009 View

Deutsche Telekom AG (DT) Thursday said third-quarter net profit was up 7.2% on tight cost control and kept its outlook for 2009.

Net profit for the quarter ended Sept. 30 was EUR959 million, up from EUR895 million a year earlier, as Deutsche Telekom's operating profit improved.

Revenue for the period was up 5.2% to EUR16.26 billion.

Closely watched earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or Ebitda, adjusted for one-time items and restructuring, the company's preferred measure of operating performance, rose 5.2% to EUR5.53 billion.

Deutsche Telekom's sales and operating profit also benefited from the consolidation of Greek peer OTE, which contributed EUR1.5 billion to Deutsche Telekom's third-quarter sales and EUR600 million to its adjusted Ebitda.

Deutsche Telekom results met expectations for sales of EUR16.27 billion and beat the adjusted Ebitda view of EUR5.33 billion, according to a Dow Jones Newswires poll of 13 analysts.

Deutsche Telekom shares closed at EUR9.29 Wednesday. In the past 12 months the share lost 20.5%, underperforming the DJ Euro Stoxx Telecom which gained 12.6% in the same period, after Deutsche Telekom's profit warning ahead of its first-quarter results weighed on the share, and analysts said it's undervalued right now.

-By Archibald Preuschat, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]