By Dominic Chopping


STOCKHOLM--Telia Co. AB on Friday lifted its dividend after posting a better-than-expected fourth-quarter net profit.

The Swedish telecommunications operator said it made a fourth-quarter net profit of 1.19 billion kronor ($126.7 million), compared with a loss of SEK24.5 billion a year earlier and the SEK1.1 billion expected in a FactSet poll.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization--the company's preferred metric, which strips out exceptional and other one-off items--fell 1.6% to SEK7.29 billion, above the SEK7.22 billion expected.

Net sales slipped 0.4% to SEK23.38 billion.

The company announced a dividend for 2021 of SEK2.05 a share up from SEK2.00 in the previous year.

Telia expects like-for-like 2022 service revenue and adjusted Ebitda to grow by low-single digits. Cash capital expenditure, excluding fees for licenses and spectrum, is seen between SEK14.0 billion and SEK15.0 billion.

Service revenue and adjusted Ebitda are still expected to grow by low to mid-single digits between 2021 and 2023.

In a separate announcement late Thursday, Telia said it has agreed to sell 49% of its Swedish tower business to Brookfield and Alecta for SEK5.5 billion in cash. The company intends to return the net transaction proceeds to shareholders.


Write to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com


(END) Dow Jones Newswires

01-28-22 0208ET