Cell C Holdings Ltd., the South African mobile operator backed by Blue Label Telecoms and led by brothers Brett and Mark Levy, has reported a sharp increase in annual profit to R4.16 billion ($260 million) for the year ended May 31, 2026, marking a significant improvement in profitability following its restructuring and listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).

The South African telecommunications operator’s profit rose 87.65% from R2.22 billion ($138.4 million) a year earlier, while revenue increased nearly 14% to R12.64 billion ($789.68 million), reflecting stronger prepaid performance, continued wholesale growth and the consolidation of Comm Equipment Company (CEC).

Revenue and subscriber growth showing stronger post-IPO performance

Revenue increased to R12.64 billion ($789.68 million) from R11.14 billion ($696.02 million), supported partly by the consolidation of CEC from November 27, 2025, while service revenue rose 5.6% to R11.64 billion ($727.17 million), with growth supported by the normalisation of historical prepaid airtime discounts and continued expansion in wholesale operations.

Operating profit increased 200.3% to R4.8 billion ($300 million) from R1.6 billion ($100 million), while earnings per share rose 57.6% to R23.41. Headline earnings per share increased 57.4% to R23.38. Prepaid remained a key growth driver, with net revenue increasing 9.7% to approximately R5.8 billion (4362.29 million) as historical airtime discounts normalised and the customer base recovered.

Prepaid subscribers increased by 1.3 million during the year. Postpaid service revenue grew 1.2% to R2.3 billion following a deliberate clean-up of the subscriber base, while average revenue per user increased to R242 from R225, indicating an improvement in customer quality. Total subscribers reached 8.88 million, representing a 17.1% increase from the previous year. Data traffic also rose 47%, reinforcing data and digital connectivity as key drivers of future growth.

EBITDA and profit improve sharply

Adjusted EBITDA increased 16.9% to R2.38 billion ($148.57 million), reflecting improved underlying operating performance, while reported EBITDA surged 161.8% to R5.51 billion ($344.01 million). Operating profit rose 200.3% to R4.8 billion ($299.76 million).

Total expenses increased 17% year on year, largely reflecting the consolidation of CEC, IPO-related costs of R351 million and strategic investments in people, technology and organisational capability.

The company delivered growth across prepaid, postpaid and wholesale operations, while the integration of Comm Equipment Company (CEC) and a substantially strengthened balance sheet supported its transition toward a more disciplined, asset-light and partnership-led growth model.

Wholesale and MVNO platform drive growth

Wholesale revenue increased 20% year on year, supported by continued momentum in Cell C’s mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) business. The company ended the year with more than 5.7 million MVNO Home Location Register subscribers, up 27.3% from 4.49 million a year earlier.

The performance strengthens Cell C’s case for an asset-light, partnership-led model, allowing it to expand its subscriber ecosystem while maintaining disciplined investment levels.

Group CEO Jorge Mendes said the year marked a transition from recovery toward more deliberate growth, with the first half focused on restructuring and the IPO and the second half on execution and CEC integration.

Market positioning and outlook

Cell C is currently ranked as the 118th most valuable stock on the JSE with a capitalization of R9.11 billion ($569.3 million), accounting for approximately 0.037% of the exchange’s total equity market capitalization. The company’s balance sheet also strengthened materially, with net debt falling 64.5% to R2.02 billion, including R802 million in lease liabilities. Its net debt ratio improved to 1.56x from 4.29x a year earlier.

Cell C’s balance sheet underwent a significant turnaround following its restructuring and JSE listing. Total assets expanded 101.8% to R10.24 billion ($639.8 million) from R5.07 billion ($317.02 million), while total equity moved from a negative R8.3 billion to a R3.35 billion ($209.27 million).

Cell C expects continued growth in prepaid and postpaid, while wholesale and MVNO operations are expected to remain key growth drivers. Despite regulatory headwinds, including data rollover requirements and lower mobile termination rates, the company expects full-year revenue growth in the upper-single-digit range in FY2027.