Several blue-chip stocks have performed well this year even as macroeconomic headwinds cause investors to worry about corporate earnings. One of them is Singtel (SGX: Z74). Singapore’s largest telco saw its share price hit its 52-week high of S$3.11 recently but has since retreated to S$2.93. At this level, the group’s shares are still up nearly 20% year-to-date, making it one of the star performers within the Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI). Singtel recently released its business update for the first quarter of fiscal 2025 (1Q FY2025) ending 30 June 2024. Investors may be curious to know if the telco can reclaim its 52-week high, so let’s dig deeper into its earnings report to find out.

Higher underlying net profit

Singtel saw its operating revenue dip by 2.1% year on year to S$3.4 billion, led by declines in Optus and Singtel Singapore but offset by year-on-year increases for NCS and Digital infraCo. Despite the decline, operating profit jumped 27.4% year on year to S$382 million....