(Adds details, outlook)
LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - Mobile operator Vodafone
reported a 1.2% drop in full-year adjusted earnings, coming in
at the bottom of its guidance and missing market expectations,
but forecast growth this year.
The company posted adjusted EBITDA (earnings before tax,
interest, depreciation and amortization) of 14.4 billion euros
on revenue of 43.8 billion euros, down 2.6%, for the year.
Chief Executive Nick Read said Vodafone exited the year with
accelerating service revenue growth across its business, with a
particularly good performance in its largest market, Germany.
"The increased demand for our services supports our ambition
to grow revenues and cash flow over the medium-term," he said.
Read has focused Vodafone on markets in Europe and Africa
and has spun off its mobile towers infrastructure into a
separate business that it listed in Frankfurt in March.
He said the next phase of his strategy would focus on
driving shareholder returns through deleveraging, improving the
return on capital, and committing to its dividend.
The company said it expected EBITDA for the current year to
rise to 15.0 - 15.4 billion euros, with adjusted free cash flow
of at least 5.2 billion euros.
(Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by William James and Kate
Holton)
Vodafone (VOD)