Bharti Airtel beats estimate on one-time gain

Bharti Airtel on Tuesday reported a 25% sequential decline in consolidated net profit during the January-March quarter at Rs 11,022 crore. However, it beat Bloomberg’s estimate of Rs 6,509 crore, primarily due to a significant exceptional gain. This included a tax benefit of Rs 5,913 crore arising from the recognition of previously unrecognised deferred tax assets. As a result, on a year-on-year basis net profit was up 432%. Excluding exceptional items, net profit stood at Rs 5,222 crore, down from Rs 7,545 crore in the preceding quarter, which too had been buoyed by similar one-time gains.