This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48264505
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Vodafone cuts payout to shareholders | Vodafone cuts payout to shareholders |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Vodafone has swung to a full-year loss and cut its dividend to shareholders for the first time. | |
| The reduction in the dividend to 9 euro cents a share from 15.07 cents contradicts a pledge in November by new chief executive Nick Read to maintain the payout. | The reduction in the dividend to 9 euro cents a share from 15.07 cents contradicts a pledge in November by new chief executive Nick Read to maintain the payout. |
| The mobile phone giant pays one of the biggest dividends in the UK. | The mobile phone giant pays one of the biggest dividends in the UK. |
| The €7.6bn (£6.6bn) loss was in part caused by the sale of Vodafone India. A year ago profits were €2.8bn. | The €7.6bn (£6.6bn) loss was in part caused by the sale of Vodafone India. A year ago profits were €2.8bn. |
| Revenues in the year to March fell 6% to €43.7bn. | |
| 'Headwinds' | |
| Mr Read said the group was at a "key point of transformation". | Mr Read said the group was at a "key point of transformation". |
| "We are executing our strategy at pace and have achieved our guidance for the year, with good growth in most markets but also increased competition in Spain and Italy and headwinds in South Africa.," he said. | "We are executing our strategy at pace and have achieved our guidance for the year, with good growth in most markets but also increased competition in Spain and Italy and headwinds in South Africa.," he said. |
| "These challenges weighed on our service revenue growth during the year, and together with high spectrum auction costs have reduced our financial headroom." | "These challenges weighed on our service revenue growth during the year, and together with high spectrum auction costs have reduced our financial headroom." |
| He said the dividend was being "rebased" to allow further growth and cut back on debt. | He said the dividend was being "rebased" to allow further growth and cut back on debt. |
| Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: "Vodafone is a huge dividend payer and so [it's] important. | |
| "The fact they've been expanding heavily has meant they need to now cut back on the dividend to pay down all the debt they've acquired." | |
| Its debt was €27.0bn at the end of its financial year, down from €29.6bn a year earlier. | |
| Vodafone has been expanding beyond mobile phones, buying broadband companies in countries such as Germany and Spain, and is now incurring big bills to build 5G networks. | |
| It is also in the process of taking over some of the assets of Liberty Global in what it is biggest deal since its £112bn takeover of Mannesmann in 2000. | |
| Vodafone started paying dividends in the 1990s, and its payouts amount to about €3.5bn a year. |