America Movil shares rise on strong earnings

Investing.com -- Shares of America Movil (NYSE:AMX ) rose 1.4% Wednesday following the company's release of its Q3 2024 earnings, which showcased robust EBITDA growth, driven by strong operations across key markets and currency dynamics, according to Citi analysts.

Citi noted that AMX's EBITDA figures exceeded expectations, coming in 5% above consensus. The company reported EBITDA of MXN 89.2 billion, marking a 13% year-over-year and 7% quarter-over-quarter increase.

"The beat to our numbers came mainly from strong results in Brazil, Colombia, and Other Regions," Citi said, with these regions outperforming Citi's forecasts by 10%, 4%, and 3%, respectively.

While operational performance was solid, Citi said AMX's net profit missed expectations due to currency fluctuations.

Citi explained that the weaker Mexican peso led to a "P$17.9 billion net financial result," which caused net income to fall 72% below Citi's estimate and 56% below consensus.

The bank notes hat AMX's net debt also increased to P$639 billion, up 25% year-over-year, largely due to the impact of foreign exchange movements on the balance sheet.

Despite the bottom-line miss, Citi highlighted positive developments such as reduced capital expenditures, noting that "AMX 9M24 CapEx is down 13% YoY," supporting its $7 billion CapEx guidance.

They added that CapEx in Q3 totaled MXN31 billion, coming in 6% below consensus and 17% lower than Citi's forecast.

Performance in Mexico was in line with forecasts, delivering adjusted EBITDA of MXN35 billion, though Citi noted that "EBITDA margins were lower than expected at 41.6% vs. our 43.0% estimate."

Meanwhile, Citi pointed to Brazil as a standout, achieving a 44% EBITDA margin, reflecting the success of the Oi consolidation.

Additionally, Citi notes that AMX recently secured approval from Chilean regulators to consolidate ClaroVTR, a move set to enhance Q4 results.

Source: Investing.com