IHS Towers, a leading telecom infrastructure firm founded by U.S. telecom tycoon Sam Darwish, reported a $26.1-million loss at the end of its 2021 fiscal year, which concluded on Dec. 31, despite a 12.6-percent rise in sales over the period.
According to a financial report provided by the telecom infrastructure provider, the loss that it incurred at the end of 2021 fell by 91.9 percent from $322.7 million in 2020 to $26.1 million, as the double-digit percentage rise in revenue failed to transfer into substantial profit for IHS Towers.
The company’s revenue increased 12.6 percent from $1.4 billion to $1.58 billion, owing mostly to site escalations, lease modifications, and foreign exchange resets, as well as the purchase of additional sites and colocations.
Despite a double-digit rise in sales, a $422.03-million financing cost incurred during the quarter, along with a 42.5-percent increase in administrative expenditures from $236.1 million to $336.5 million, weighed heavily on earnings.
The group’s cumulative losses climbed from $2.84 billion to $2.86 billion as a consequence of the dismal performance, but its declared capital increased from $4.53 billion to $5.22 billion as a result of its IPO debut on the New York Stock Exchange in 2021.
In commenting on the group’s financial success, Darwish, the chairman and CEO of IHS Towers, said the company concluded 2021 as the fourth-largest independent global tower firm, with more than 31,000 towers covering nine nations across three continents.
To broaden its operations and put its profits and revenue on a development path, IHS announced in January the acquisition of the GTS SP5 portfolio of 2,115 towers in Brazil, making the company the third-largest tower firm in Brazil.
As of March 17, the largest telecom infrastructure firm’s shares were trading at $10.27, giving the company a $3.37-billion market value on the New York Stock Exchange.
