February 15 (SeeNews) - Digi Communications [BSE: DIGI], the majority owner of Romanian company RCS&RDS, said that its net profit fell to by 21.4 million euro ($24.1 million), from 62 million euro in 2017, mainly due to higher finance costs.
Net finance costs grew to 59.1 million euro in 2018, from 35.9 million euro in the previous year, Digi said in a statement filed with the Bucharest Stock Exchange, BVB, on Thursday evening.
According to the company, the increase in costs is due to the full acquisition of Hungarian fixed communications operator Invitel, purchased for 140 million euro in 2018.
Total revenues increased 13.3% on the year to 1.038 billion euro last year.
The company continued to develop new projects and upgrade its technology in 2018, particularly in the field of infrastructure, in Romania and Hungary, allocating last year a CAPEX of 279.3 million euro.
Earlier this month, Digi Communications said it has added a further 125 million euro to its 350 million euro notes issued on the Irish Stock Exchange in 2016. The gross proceeds of the offering will be used to prepay certain loans contracted in 2016 and 2018 by the company, to pay costs, expenses and fees in relation to the offering and for general corporate purposes.
RCS&RDS, founded by Romanian businessman Zoltan Teszari, comprises two companies - Romanian Cable Systems (RCS) founded in 1994, and Romanian Data Systems (RDS) founded in 1998. Its parent company, Cable Communication Systems, now Digi Communications N.V., indirectly operates telecommunications groups in Hungary, Spain and Italy through RCS&RDS.
Digi is part of BVB's blue-chip BET and BET-TR indices.
Shares of Digi traded 3.57% lower at 27 lei on the BVB as at 1134 CET on Friday.
($=0.8867 euro)