Idea Cellular: Pace of Vodafone merger, increase in rates to be watched

While it operated efficiently in the quarter, Idea Cellular is trailing peers on revenue and in adding customers, especially in the broadband segment

Idea Cellular surprised the Street by improving its operating profit and margins on a sequential basis for the March quarter. While Bharti Airtel reported a 16 per cent fall in operating profit on a sequential basis, Idea reported an 18 per cent jump due to a 11 per cent drop in operating expenditure.

Two-third of the saving came in the form of lower network and spectrum costs, down 24 per cent. Consequently, margin came in higher at 23.6 per cent, up 478 basis points over the December quarter. 

The operating metrics were boosted by one-offs such as reversal of an