Tower Bersama (IDX: TBIG), the second-largest independent tower company in Indonesia, today announced Q1 2021 earnings for the group and provided updates on its tower infrastructure portfolio, leasing, and M&A activity.
Financial Performance in Q1 2021 – Tower Bersama
In Q1 2021, Tower Bersama reported revenue of Rp1.42tn ($98.0m), a 2.2% increase quarter-over-quarter, and EBITDA of Rp1.24tn ($85.4m), a 2.1% increase quarter-over-quarter. Therefore, the company’s EBITDA margin was 87.1% in Q1 2021, roughly flat quarter-over-quarter.
Operational Performance in Q1 2021 – Tower Bersama
Tower Portfolio
Tower Bersama’s tower portfolio comprised 16.4k telecommunications towers as of Q1 2021. During the quarter, Tower Bersama grew its tower count by 235 towers or 1.5%, from 16.2k at year-end 2020.
Additionally, Tower Bersama’s 16.4k towers have a tenancy ratio of 1.98x, equating to 32.5k tenants with equipment on its towers. Notably, the company has the highest tenancy ratio among independent tower companies in Indonesia.
Lease-Up
In Q1 2021, Tower Bersama generated 811 gross tenancies, of which 252 were build-to-suit (BTS) sites and 559 were co-locations. Additionally, net tenancies on Tower Bersama’s infrastructure were 761 during the first quarter of 2021. Finally, the company is targeting 3.0k new gross organic tenancies during full-year 2021.
Overall, Tower Bersama’s organic growth will primarily be driven by wireless carriers Telkomsel, Hutchison 3 Indonesia (CK Hutchison), and Smartfren Telecom. Whereas Tower Bersama’s other key tenants, Indosat and XL Axiata are not expected to meaningfully contribute to the company’s growth.
Notably, tenancy growth in Indonesia currently centers around 4G/LTE network roll-outs and densification.
Inti Bangun Sejahtera – Tower Bersama Acquisition
Following quarter-end, Tower Bersama completed the purchase of 3.0k towers from PT Inti Bangun Sejahtera Tbk (IBST) for Rp3.98tn ($280m). IBST’s towers had a 1.5x tenancy ratio, equating to 4.5k tenants with equipment on its towers. Finally, in terms of valuation, Tower Bersama is paying IBST $93k per site.
Pro forma for the IBST acquisition, Tower Bersama’s portfolio rises to 19.4k telecommunications towers and 37.0k tenants. Additionally, the company’s EBITDA increases by ~10% with the IBST acquisition.
Key Shareholders – Tower Bersama
At quarter-end, Tower Bersama’s founding shareholders Saratoga Group (34.2%) and Provident Capital Partners (25.5%) remained significant owners of the company.
