Vodafone revenue growth improves as UK picks up

Vodafone (LON:VOD) reported an acceleration of service revenue growth in the financial first quarter driven by a strong performance in the UK and improved showings in Germany, Italy and Spain.

The FTSE 100-listed telco also said it had appointed former SAP chief financial officer Luka Mucic to the same role at Vodafone, beginning in September.

Total revenue rose on an organic basis by 3.7% to £10.74bn, an improvement from growth of 1.9% in the previous quarter.

Broad-based service revenue improvement was seen across almost all European markets, the firm said in a statement.

The rate of decline in German service revenue improved to -1.3% from -2.8% in the previous quarter supported by broadband price increases while the UK business saw growth of 5.7% compared to 3.8% before, supported by annual price increases and a higher customer base.

In Italy, service revenue declined by 1.6% compared to a 2.7% fall in the previous quarter while in Spain revenue slipped 3.0%, an improvement from a 3.7% fall before.

Vodafone Business service revenue growth accelerated to 4.5% from 2.9% in the previous quarter driven by a strong performance in digital services.

Despite the uptick in revenue, the firm held financial year 2024 guidance of adjusted EBITDAaL of €13.3bn and adjusted free cash flow of c.€3.3bn.