Vodafone beats expectation with high of 2.2% in quarterly revenue

LONDON-Vodafone, the world''s second-largest mobile operator, had a better-than-expected growth of 2,2% in revenue for the first quarter, reflecting the robust performance in Italy and in Spain, as well as the acceleration of demand in Turkey.
The British company reported that revenue expansion was above the consensus of analysts 1,6% high, reinforcing confidence in the perspective outlined for the year increased 4 to 8% in main core business profit.
"We had a good start to the year, with strong commercial strength in Europe and accelerated growth in Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific)," said on Friday the Chief Executive of Vodafone, Vittorio Colao.
The company''s shares climbed more than 1%, after reaching the maximum in six weeks.
"We see this as a decent performance delivered widely in all Vodafone markets", assessed the Citi, which assigns recommendation "neutral" for the British operator.
Vodafone expects a jump in cash flow this year, which should allow the company to raise dividends, while reducing investments in network, improves efficiency and faces intense competition in India.
The company has invested billions of pounds in networks to meet the growing demand for mobile data. Colao said the increase in data traffic in the quarter was equivalent to the total of two years ago.