By Lebone Rodah Mosima
Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi has welcomed Telkom SA SOC Ltd’s annual results after the telecommunications group lifted revenue, grew data income and declared a higher ordinary dividend that will deliver about R559 million to the South African government.
Telkom, in which the government holds a 40.5% stake, reported a 1.4% rise in group revenue to R44.5 billion for the year ended 31 March 2026, supported by growth in its consumer and Openserve businesses, although this was partly offset by weaker revenue at BCX, its business technology arm.
The group’s data-led strategy continued to gain traction, with data revenue rising 7.6% to R26.6 billion and now accounting for 59.8% of total revenue.
Telkom Mobile surpassed 25 million subscribers, while mobile data subscribers grew 31.1% to almost 20 million.
“The results reflect continued progress in the implementation of Telkom’s strategy and demonstrate the value of disciplined execution, operational efficiency, and a sustained focus on areas of growth,” Malatsi said.
Telkom declared an ordinary dividend of 270 cents per share, up 65.7% from the previous year’s ordinary dividend, after raising its dividend payout ratio range to between 40% and 60% of free cash flow.
The previous year’s dividend income was supported by both an ordinary dividend and a special dividend related to the Swiftnet disposal. No special dividend was declared for the 2026 financial year.
Telkom’s headline earnings per share rose to 708.5 cents, while free cash flow increased 10.4% to R3.1 billion. Group EBITDA rose to R12.5 billion, with the EBITDA margin improving to 28.1%.
Malatsi said Telkom remained a strategic asset in South Africa’s digital economy, with its fixed and wireless infrastructure playing a central role in expanding connectivity.
He said the group’s fibre backbone, metropolitan networks and wireless access platforms were important infrastructure for economic participation, innovation and access to digital services.
He said he expected Telkom to continue to “build on this performance while contributing to a more connected, inclusive, and competitive digital economy for South Africa”.
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