JSE-listed Cell C on Friday delivered its maiden financial results since its listing in November, showing improved financial results as its turnaround gains momentum.

During the year ended May 31, 2026, Cell C reported a 161.8% increase in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) of R5.51-billion, including one-off gains arising from the restructuring transaction.

Excluding those items, adjusted Ebitda increased 16.9% to R2.38-billion, with Comm Equipment Company (CEC) consolidated by only six months.

During the year under review, Cell C’s headline earnings a share increased 57.4% to 2 338c, while earnings a share rose 57.6% to 2 341c.

“The 2026 financial year was a year of two halves for Cell C. The first half was defined by the successful completion of our restructuring and initial public offering, leaving the group with a significantly stronger balance sheet and positioning us to execute our strategy as a newly listed company,” Cell C group CEO Jorge Mendes commented.

“The second half was about execution, integrating CEC, operating as a single business and demonstrating the growth potential of our asset-light, partnership-led platform. The progress made during the year is reflected in our results.”

In the year ended May 31, 2026, Cell C achieved 13.5% revenue growth to R12.64-billion, with service revenue of R11.14-billion, equating to a 5.6% increase.

Further, the company’s net debt reduced 64% to R2.02-billion, from R5.69-billion, with net debt to Ebitda improving to 1.56 times from 4.29 times.

Cash capital expenditure (capex) during the year under review reached R810-million, with total additions to property, plant and equipment and intangibles of R1.15-billion.

“Operationally, the business moved from recovery toward more deliberate growth,” he said, adding that total subscribers increased 17.1% to 8.88-million, with an additional 5.7-million mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) Home Location Register (HLR) subscribers.

Alongside this, data traffic was up 47%, highlighting data as the primary growth driver, while voice traffic decreased 4%, a contained decline that was indicative of a resilient portfolio.

The company’s wholesale segment remained a standout performer and continues to validate Cell C’s platform strategy, with sustained momentum in the MVNO business demonstrating the strength and scalability of Cell C's partner-led model, Mendes noted.

Wholesale service revenue increased 20% to R1.76-billion, with Cell C holding an estimated 80% to 85% share of the South African MVNO market.

Prepaid also delivered a stronger performance, supported by a recovery in the customer base and the normalisation of historical airtime discounts.

“Our Prepaid business delivered a strong performance in a highly competitive market, with net revenue increasing by 9.7% year-on-year to about R5.8-billion. Growth was supported by the normalisation of historical airtime discounts and a meaningful recovery in the customer base, with Prepaid subscribers increasing by 1.3-million during the year,” he said.

Postpaid stabilised during the year, with service revenue increasing marginally by 1.2% to R2.3-billion, reflecting the deliberate clean-up of the subscriber base and the alignment of churn reporting with industry standards.

Revenues from Other Businesses, which includes roaming and incoming revenues, digital services, fibre and enterprise, declined as expected, mostly owing to the regulated reduction in mobile termination rates, while enterprise remains an important longer-term growth opportunity.

“The turnaround delivered what it promised. We have built network credibility, rebuilt and grown the customer base, entrenched ourselves as South Africa's leading wholesale platform, and earned back customer trust. With the CEC integration complete, the 2027 financial year is the first full year of a new, simpler Cell C, and our 2030 strategy builds on what the turnaround created,” Mendes highlighted.

Looking ahead, Cell C expects Prepaid to remain a key contributor to growth, supported by further market gains, while Postpaid will show encouraging improvement as the company benefits from a full year of CEC integration and enhanced commercial execution.

“Wholesale remains a key growth driver and we expect double-digit revenue growth to continue supported by the continued strong performance of our MVNO business.”

However, the Other revenue segment will continue to be impacted by lower interconnect tariffs, while revenue growth in the second half of the year will be affected by the implementation of the data rollover regulation in January 2027.

“Notwithstanding the regulatory headwinds from both the data rollover regulations and the termination rate glide path, we expect full-year revenue growth in the upper single-digit range,” he added.

“With our restructuring complete, CEC integrated and balance sheet materially strengthened, we believe Cell C is well positioned to benefit from these market trends through its asset-light, partnership led model,” Mendes concluded.