UAE telecom operator du reported a 9.8% year-on-year increase in net profit to Dhs798 million for the second quarter of 2026, supported by higher service revenue and improved operational efficiency despite a challenging market environment.
The company’s revenue for the quarter rose 4.6%, while service revenue increased 6.7%. EBITDA grew 9.2%, with the EBITDA margin expanding by two percentage points year-on-year to 48.8%.
Financial results
du said subscriber growth slowed during the quarter, with mobile and fixed customer bases increasing by 1.6% and 5.5%, respectively, due to lower activation levels following regional developments.
The company’s Board approved an interim cash dividend of 26 fils per share, up 8.3% compared with the same period last year.
Malek Al Malek, Chairman, said: “du delivered a strong set of results during the first half of the year, once again demonstrating the resilience of its business model and the strength of its execution. These results were achieved despite heightened regional tensions during the period, supported by disciplined strategy execution, operational excellence, and a clear long-term vision. We remain focused on building upon two decades of innovation, growth, and contribution to the UAE’s digital transformation journey. During the first half, we continued to strengthen our digital infrastructure capabilities through the accelerated execution of our plans and the diversification of our investment programmes.
The Board remains confident in management’s ability to navigate evolving market conditions while maintaining a strong customer focus, operational excellence, and disciplined execution. These qualities continue to reinforce du’s leadership position and support the delivery of sustainable long-term value. This confidence is underpinned by our strong fundamentals, healthy cash generation, and disciplined approach to capital allocation, which continue to provide the flexibility to invest in future growth while delivering attractive returns to shareholders. Accordingly, the Board has approved the distribution of an interim dividend of 26 fils per share.”
Digital investments
du said it continued to expand its digital infrastructure investments, including data centre projects ahead of launching services under an agreement with a global hyperscaler.
The company also launched du Ventures, a venture capital fund established in partnership with Shorooq to support early and growth-stage companies working on emerging technologies.
Strategy progress
Fahad Al Hassawi, CEO, said: “Our performance during the second quarter reflects the disciplined execution of our strategy, the strength of our customer proposition and our ability to quickly adapt to fluid market conditions. We focused on maintaining commercial momentum through targeted customer initiatives, enhancing our value propositions, strengthening customer engagement and continuing to invest in the quality of our services and networks. We delivered subscriber growth in mobile and fixed during the quarter, albeit at a measured pace compared to prior quarters.
“We continued to make meaningful progress against our strategic priorities, and accelerated our investments in cloud, AI and data centre solutions, to strengthening our digital infrastructure portfolio. During the quarter, we also expanded our innovation agenda through the launch of du Ventures established in partnership with Shorooq, a strategic investment platform focused on supporting high-potential companies developing emerging technologies. This development reflects our commitment to fostering innovation, creating new growth opportunities, and contributing to the UAE’s knowledge-based economy. We also managed our costs carefully to protect our margins and cope with a volatile situation. These efforts enabled us to sustain both top-line and bottom-line growth despite a softer monetisation trend and a cautious spending environment, demonstrating the resilience of our business model.”
tanvir@dubainewsweek.com
