Talktalk Telecom Share Discussion Threads

[w1ndjammer] 18/11/2016 10:37

we need long term shareholders not "day traders"

close to 9% divi now, I have had a few more.

WJ.

[bookbroker] 18/11/2016 10:17

The dividend should if anything be paid in a scrip format, that way would enable the company's main shareholders to buy back more stock, it was split from CPW lumbered with an onerous debt burden!

[bookbroker] 18/11/2016 10:14

Weakness should never be seen as a sign of vulnerability, it should be recognised in many ways a positive light that the reality is such that the company accepts that it is a necessary form of action, it is not about affordability, but more the fact the cash can be better utilised rather than serving the founder shareholder's needs, Dunstone owns nearly thirty per cent of this company, he should accept that rewarding of dividends reflects the positive momentum, the share price suggests otherwise!

[w1ndjammer] 18/11/2016 09:50

dividend cut would be the worst thing to do, would show a sign of weakness
it is affordable

WJ.

[w1ndjammer] 17/11/2016 13:22

well bought more this morning, I have had reason to speak with the staff in SA
over the last week or so, and they have really upped their game, must have had
a good size 10 up the ass. could not do enough for me.

WJ.

[wilkie_hk] 17/11/2016 12:59

Oh well, that's me on board for a few. I've had these on watchlist for a while now and normally look for a dual dip in FTSE with a dip in the watched company's share price. However, with ex div next week, I decided to make the plunge. Understandably, existing holders are feeling a little downbeat at the moment, with the share price at a 12 month low today. Hopefully, I haven't tried to catch a falling knife here.

[salpara111] 17/11/2016 12:21

Well I took my relatively modest loss this morning.
The monster divi does not seem to be able to provide any support and I really cant see who would want to buy them out so I guess it can drift back further.
The divi situation is odd in that the stock is priced for a cut in the divi but they seem to feel that new growth is going to come on stream sooner rather than later which will support it.
I am truly amazed that Harding still has her job but I guess it is the ones at the top who are most protected.

[neilyb675] 17/11/2016 09:48

Thanks-Thanks

[gotnorolex] 17/11/2016 09:37

Period.............Ex-date.........Pay-Date......Net Dividend...Currency
H1 Dividend... 24 Nov 2016.... 16.Dec 2016......5.29...............GBX

[blueledge2] 17/11/2016 09:00

Is it ex div tomorrow?

[pierre oreilly] 16/11/2016 10:53

Well there's nothing certain in the sm. The divi as i see it is a tangible indicator of what the directors see as the prospects for a company, whatever waffle or undecipherable numbers are in the accounts. I doubt the divi would have been at an uncovered level if they didn't expect it to be covered in the immediate future. The hack and costs were a one off, and obviously a record of rising divis doesn't want to be destroyed by a one-off. No guarantees of course, but that's how i see it. For a few years now, i've used the divi as a really good indicator of what directors really think of the future.

[fenners66] 16/11/2016 09:08

Pierre- its not about having debt per se, my comment was aimed at the dividend being higher than free cash flow thus borrowing to pay a dividend. I get that she sees growth coming through to cover it, problem is that's not a given and then if that metric fails....

Dont get me wrong I bought for yield and the slim chance of a takeover but I prefer to see dividends covered as I know that an uncovered dividend does not last.

[1gw] 15/11/2016 20:32

I was tempted to buy more after the drop this morning, but in the end decided it's already a big enough part of my portfolio.

Dido is a great presenter and conveys very well her belief that the company is going in the right direction. A problem for the market though, in my opinion, is that targets appear to be too frequently a bit too ambitious and the company appears to repeatedly set itself up to disappoint. Today it was on earnings heading for the lower end of the previous range and the final dividend expected to be "broadly" covered by "operating" free cash flow instead of covered unreservedly by free cash flow.

However, the underlying recovery and growth story is I believe still strong. One of the reasons for today's reductions in guidance was apparently the unexpectedly high level of success in re-contracting customers - a nice problem to have. But then the cynics would say there is nearly always a positive spin on talktalk missing its targets.

I personally am not too concerned about cashflow, debt and the continued commitment to the dividend. The company is aiming to grow itself out of the problem and so even though debt is creeping up, earnings are expected to grow faster and the all-important "leverage" should fall as a result. I still have confidence that management will deliver here, albeit not quite as quickly as they had hoped.

But it is certainly a frustrating share to hold.

[salpara111] 15/11/2016 18:03

Not sure what to do myself.
I didnt feel that the results justified the drop but equally I didnt feel that they would have justified a 5% rise either.
I cannot understand why they raised the divi in the current financial year given how over extended it already was but here we are!

[rathlindri] 15/11/2016 17:29

interesting analysis...

[bookbroker] 15/11/2016 15:41

Harding is an irresponsible leader, she's oiling the pockets of Dunstone and Ross by being so generous with the dividend, this company should be concentrating on alleviating the debt issue first, then reward later, otherwise the big shareholders will simply see dilution in the capital value going forward, EBITDA one thing, but the it's about the future not the present!

[pierre oreilly] 15/11/2016 12:32

fenner, i'd say every ftse company which pays divis also has debt. Even companies with lots of cash still usually have lots of debt, it seems to be the way of a capitalist business environment.

Surprised poor old talk went down on the results, which i thought would be taken a lot better than they were. The lowered guidance is simply a very slight narrowing of the forecast range for the next results and in practice means nothing of substance. I have faith in the future because their retail strategy has been to get people to sign up with discounts for part of the contract. I have discounts running out this month (at 6 months), then in another 6 months (at 12 months), and then again in a year (at 18 monhs). I think this alone will increase their turnover and profit in the immediate future, irrespective of other factors. Relieved the divi was maintained, and promised to be maintained or increased at the year end - that bodes well imv.

[muscletrade] 15/11/2016 09:46

@fenner, I also believe that they could be taken out. meantime hanging tough.and my guess that it would be blue at the end of the day is going to take some doing.

Re your comment "You can boil it down to borrowing money to pay dividends which is not a good thing". This is a perfectly valid view,and they are in good company. there is quite a list of companies out there doing the same right now, such as Vodafone, Shell, BP etc.
this was already a known for talk yesterday and is unchanged today, but yes, of course it is a long term issue.

[fenners66] 15/11/2016 09:25

Although I bought some a few weeks ago and will leave them be ( I actually think there is a chance that someone could buy them ) I am concerned at the Net Debt has risen. You can boil it down to borrowing money to pay dividends which is not a good thing.

[muscletrade] 15/11/2016 08:42

The part of the statement market does not like in my view


"Success of re-contracting to deliver FY EBITDA towards lower end of GBP320m-GBP360m guidance"

having said that I am also of the view that this is more than in the price already. I expect share price to be in the blue by end of day. (famous last words, we shall see).

[1gw] 15/11/2016 07:50

Not sure. I read it as OK, but basically mixed on the financials albeit with a positive spin. They appear to have beaten on 1H guidance but to be guiding down a bit on full-year earnings and cashflow.