Telia boss: “There will be a reduction of the dividend” – Swedish Dagbladet

TeliaSonera’s CEO Johan He Lind. Photo: Jessica Gow / TT

TeliaSonera Development on the stock exchange has been lousy. In the past five years, Telia’s shares fell as much as the stock market has risen 25 percent.

The comfort of the shareholders has been dividend. The dividend yield at the current share price level is sky high over even the most preferential savings accounts; this year’s dividend of SEK 3 on a share of about 40.

TeliaSonera now decided on a new dividend policy with the objective of a dividend equivalent to 80 percent of free cash flow. According to Telia, it means that you should expect a dividend of “at least SEK 2″ next year, but in an interview with Svenska Dagbladet as specify whether he Lind.

– You should of course expect a reduction, and I think is expected by the market, says Johan He Lind.

What level should the shareholders expect?

– Then you should look at the expectations in the market and they are approximately where we have put the dividend policy, at least 2 million and at least 80 percent of the cash flow.

Even so wanted Johan He Lind formally not call the change order to reduce the dividend.

– If we had continued the business with the same set today ( including Eurasia, editor’s note) and had changed the policy in this way, so investors had seen it as a setback. Therefore, it is important to say that it is not a reduction but an adaptation. But it is clear that there is a smaller absolute amount, we say for 2016 than for the 2015th

The dividend beyond 2016 due to the development of Telia Sonera’s free cash flow, which counts latter Lind with a decline this year and a rise in 2017.

TeliaSonera’s financial statements showed increased profitability in Sweden and operating margins in the Swedish operations is significantly higher than in the rest of the group, 38.5 per cent against 23.3 per cent in Region Europe and 27.8 percent in Finland.

How do you see the risk that Swedish customers feel that they have to pay for your Eurasian adventure?

– I do not see that connection that way. We have a duty to ensure that our Swedish customers get what they expect, and at the price they expect and now they get it. We have good momentum in our business both in television, broadband and mobile, says He Lind.