e& drops plan to up stake in Mobily on stock rally: Group CEO

Hatem Dowidar, Group CEO of UAE's telecom giant e&, said that time is not suitable now for increasing the group’s 28% stake in Etihad Etisalat Co. (Mobily).

In an interview with Asharq News, Dowidar attributed e&’s decision to the rally in Mobily’s price and outperformance. Accordingly, the stock price affects the bid made by the group, which is usually higher than the market price. E& halted discussions to increase its stake in Mobily as announced last December, and may resume talks in the future.

Asked about the group’s plans to invest in telecom towers, Dowidar said that the group is moving in a number of its markets to separate telecom towers into independent companies, expecting to announce the next plan in this field before the end of this year.

As for the currency price differences in the markets in which the group operates, Dowidar stressed that this is not the first time that the group has been exposed to the risks of a decline in the price of the currency, whether in Egypt or Pakistan, explaining that this is offset by the growth in the number of subscribers and the strength of the markets.

Elsewhere, In an interview with Al Arabiya TV, Dowidar said that the group is awaiting European Union approval in the coming weeks to provide its services in four European countries, including Bulgaria, Serbia, Slovakia, and Hungary.

The group is looking at investment opportunities in different countries and may consider entering new markets in Eastern Europe. It is currently present in 16 countries, he added.

Meanwhile, the overseas operations contributed 30% to the company's profit and about 45% to revenues, according to the top executive.

Dowidar also expected the group’s profit to grow this year at levels close to those recorded in 2023, which amounted to about 3%.

Regarding the size of the group’s investments this year, Dowidar said that the group is seeking to complete a deal in Eastern Europe worth two billion euros. He added that the group also has an amount available for investment equivalent to one billion euros, stressing that it has a financial cover sufficient for these investments.

Asked about the extent of the group’s ability to implement the new dividend policy that was announced today, the CEO said that the group has a cash buffer that guarantees the implementation of the new dividend policy within three years, starting from the current year and ending in 2026.

He added that the additional distributions recommended by the board of directors will not affect the group's investment plan.

According to data available in Argaam, Etisalat's board of directors today recommended distributing cash dividends at 40 fils per share for the second half of 2023, bringing the total cash dividends to 80 fils per share for 2023.

The company's board of directors also recommended adopting a new dividend policy based on a progressive basis, which means that dividend increases by 3 fils annually for the next three years to reach 89 fils per share in the fiscal year 2026.