Etisalat plans to buy back 434.8M shares worth $2B

Based on Monday's closing share price, the buyback will be valued at Dh7.5 billion. -

Telecom giant etisalat plans to go for share buy-back programme that seeks to repurchase 434.8 million shares estimated to value as much as $2 billion.
In a statement posted on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), the telecom group said its broad of directors has approved the share buy-back proposal.
However, the "decision is still subject to the approval of the company's shareholders at the general assembly meeting scheduled on March 21, 2018" as well as the consent of the "special shareholder" and the Securities and Commodities Authority.
The share buyback is "for the purpose of cancelling or reselling," said the company posting on ADX website.
Based on Monday's closing share price the buyback will be valued at Dh7.5 billion.
The announcement that added that the broad of directors would be authorised to determine the implementation details of the move and obtain all required approvals from competent authorities.
As news spread, etisalat shares surged as much as 4.1 per cent on Tuesday, the most in more than a year, in Abu Dhabi. They closed 2.6 per cent higher, the biggest advance since December 28.
The general assembly on March 21 will also consider the board of directors' recommendation regarding the distribution of dividends amounting to 40 fils per share the second half of 2017 and approve the interim dividends of 40 fils per share, which were already distributed for the first half of 2017.
Etisalat, which has a market capitalisation of about Dh151 billion runs operations in countries ranging from Pakistan to Egypt.
Etisalat's consolidated cash and bank balances increased from Dh23.7 billion in 2016 to Dh27.1 billion in 2017.
For 2017, Etisalat Group has reported consolidated net profit before federal royalty of Dh17.45 billion, a three per cent increase year over year. For the UAE operations, the company posted profits after federal royalty of Dh8.2 billion, up by five per cent.
While the group's aggregate subscriber base reached 142 million, representing a year over year increase of one per cent on a like for like basis, in the UAE the subscriber base grew to 12.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2017 representing a year on year growth of three per cent as revenues surged by three per cent to Dh31.2 billion.
In the UAE, the operator's full year EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) in 2017 increased by two per cent to Dh16.7 billion resulting in a margin of 53 per cent.
- issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com