Aussie Broadband profits jump, declares fully franked dividend

Aussie Broadband has declared an inaugural dividend after its recording revenue just shy of $1bn in FY24.

Aussie Broadband has declared an inaugural dividend after recording a profit jump of 21 per cent. Picture: Damian Shaw

A successful $262m acquisition has boosted Aussie Broadband’s bottom line – and shareholders will reap the benefit.

The listed telco announced a fully franked dividend of 4c per share on Monday, after it recorded nearly $1bn in revenue in FY24.

Aussie Broadband brought home $999.7m for the full year to June 30, up 27 per cent from the $788m in FY23.

That was boosted by the $262m acquisition of internet messaging and calling platform Symbio in February.

It was one of the company’s successful acquisitions, unlike a failed bid for rival Superloop – which halved its losses to $14.7m and lifted its revenue 29.3 per cent to $416m over the same ­period.

Aussie Broadband said the Symbio acquisition contributed $12m to its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) over the four months it owned the business before June 30. It reported total EBITDA of $120.5m, up 34.5 per cent.

The result sent shares surging almost 12 per cent to $3.49.

The telco announced that co-founder John Reisinger, who is now chief technology officer, will leave the business by the end of October, “to spend time with his family”.

A transition has been occurring for the past 12 months, with Mr Reisinger set to hand the reins to Brad Parker, the group’s chief infrastructure engineering officer, in October.

Aussie Broadband group managing director and co-founder Phillip Britt thanked Mr Reisinger for his service, acknowledging a two-decade-long partnership.

Andrew Giles Knopp, who joined the telco as interim chief financial officer, has also been appointed CFO of the group.

The telco has begun FY25 with strong growth, adding 13,023 net broadband connections to date in the first quarter, despite a price rise in July.

Last month, Aussie Broadband launched a “challenger” telco service, Buddy Telco, which undercut its own NBN plans, as it seeks to gain ground in the low-cost telco market.

The telco reduced its guidance for FY25 at the time of launch. It had originally expected to grow between 12 to 20 per cent above its FY24 range.

Its new guidance, following investment in the new service, is for $125m to $135m, down from $135m to $145m.