Zain misses net profit forecast

Dubai: Zain, Kuwait's mobile telecommunications service provider, yesterday reported a fourth-quarter loss of 700,000 Kuwaiti dinars (Dh8 million) compared with a net profit of 86.8 million dinars a year earlier, falling short of analyst expectations.

Zain's fourth-quarter figures, based on Zawya Dow Jones calculations, missed the 70 million dinars net profit forecast penciled in by regional investment bank EFG-Hermes.

"There are a number of positives despite Zain's 4Q loss. The company suffered losses from some of its Africa operations that it has now sold. It is now sitting on a big pile of cash from its Africa assets sale and is also paying a good cash dividend," a trader at NBK Capital in Kuwait said.

Zain said on Wednesday it made a net profit of about $3.3 billion (Dh12 billion) from the sale of its African assets to India's Bharti Airtel, which will be included in the operator's second-quarter results.

The operator recently signed a final agreement to sell its African assets — excluding Morocco and Sudan —for $10.7 billion.

The telco said in a statement posted yesterday on the Kuwait bourse website that 2009 full-year net profit fell 39.4 per cent to 195 million dinars, while earnings per share for 2009 fell to 51 fils from 88 fils in 2008.