Etisalat Approves Full-Year 2017 Dividends Of 80 Fils Per Share

Etisalat’s annual general meeting has backed the board’s recommendation to pay full-year 2017 dividends of 80 fils per share and approved the board proposed Buy-back program of 5% of the company’s paid capital, representing 434.8 million shares, for the purpose of cancelling or reselling.

The meeting, held on Wednesday at the company’s headquarters in Abu Dhabi, appointed Eissa Al-Suwaidi and Eissa Abdul Fattah Kazim as Chairman and Vice President of the group respectively.

Hisham Abdullah Al Qassem, Mohammed Sultan Al Hamli, Saleh Abdullah Lootah and Mariam Saeed Ghobash were appointed as members of the Board of Directors, the seventh member is to be announced soon.

Sheikh Ahmed Mohd Sultan Bin Suroor Al Dhahiri, Abdelmonem Bin Eisa Bin Nasser Alserkal, Khalid Abdulwahid Hassan Alrustamani and Otaiba Khalaf Ahmed Khalaf Al Otaiba have been elected to fill the board seats un-assigned to the Government Shareholder.

Etisalat Group net profit, after deducting Federal Royalty, reached AED 8.4 billion, resulting in a net profit margin of 16% and the consolidated EBITDA totaled AED 26 billion for 2017, resulting in EBITDA margin of 50%, Eissa Al-Suwaidi, Chairman of the Group, said, "In 2017, we continued to achieve strong positive results with consolidated net profit, after Federal Royalty, amounted to AED 8.4 billion resulting in a net profit margin of 16%. Etisalat Group also continued to maintain its high credit rating, while aggregate subscriber base reached 142 million, 12.6 million of which are in the UAE representing YOY increase of 3%."

Adding, "We achieved this positive performance despite the rapid developments in the telecom sector as a result of the transition to the digital era and the unprecedented changes in the macroeconomic and geopolitical arenas in our footprint".

"Today, by developing one the best infrastructures in the world, we have supported in building a diversified and sustainable economy and will continue to be driven by UAE’s vision that aims at placing the country among the best in the world by the Golden Jubilee of the union.

We are honored that Etisalat was able to contribute in realizing the aspirations of UAE’s leadership when it comes to being at the forefront of the digital development in the region.

"I would like to thank the leadership of the UAE for their continued support to Etisalat Group and to express my sincere appreciation to our customers for their unwavering confidence and our shareholders for their continued support and special thanks to Etisalat management team for their commitment and dedicated work that will drive us to move forward and continue our progress and success. "

Saleh Abdullah Al Abdooli, GCEO, Etisalat Group, said, "Our journey in 2017 has set the path for maintaining good performance while gearing the company, its customers and shareholders towards achieving successful digital transformation. Our continued investments in next generation technologies, open innovation, and our entrepreneurship across all fields were the levers that allowed us to reach this far."

Al Abdooli highlighted, "Our achievements in 2017 are a clear indication that we remain in a strong position, and represent the outcome of our sincere efforts and focused strategies, despite the global economic challenges, such performance and accomplishments have helped Etisalat to stand out as the most valuable brand in the Middle East."

"At the end, I would like to thank our visionary leadership for their continuous support and for paving the way with their futuristic vision, hence, giving us a platform to excel and demonstrate our capabilities.

The UAE’s strong ties and relationships across our footprint have helped grow and expand our achievements taking it on a global scale," he concluded.