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YeboYethu profit boosted by Vodacom earnings growth

Paula Gilbert
By Paula Gilbert, ITWeb telecoms editor.
Johannesburg, 17 May 2017
YeboYethu declared a gross dividend of 112cps, to be paid on 12 June.
YeboYethu declared a gross dividend of 112cps, to be paid on 12 June.

Vodacom's BEE empowerment scheme, YeboYethu, saw net profit for the 12 months ended 31 March 2017 increase by almost 108% year-on-year, to R289.7 million.

YeboYethu says this was mainly attributable to an increase in the Vodacom SA option asset, which rose 27.5% to R1.6 billion.

"The reasons for the increase in value relate primarily to growth in mobile customer revenue of 5.7%, growth in fixed-line revenue of 17.3%, as well as a strong focus on cost savings resulting in an earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation growth of 7.3%," YeboYethu says in a statement.

The BEE scheme declared a gross dividend of 112cps, up very slightly from last year's dividend of 111cps. The dividend will be paid to shareholders on 12 June. The company's headline earnings per share skyrocketed 107.5% higher to R20.12 per share compared to almost R9.70 a share the previous year.

YeboYethu's only material investment is its investment in Vodacom, which this week reported strong results for the year ended 31 March 2017. The Vodacom group's full year revenue grew by 1.5% to almost R81.3 billion, while the South African operations saw revenue up 3.9% to R64.7 billion.

YeboYethu listed on the empowerment segment in the telecommunications sector of the JSE's main board on 11 August 2016. It was incorporated in 2008 to hold a direct investment in Vodacom SA.

In the past, BEE shares were traded on the over-the-counter BEE Market, but in 2015, the Financial Services Board mandated these shares must be traded on a licensed exchange.

YeboYethu's share price has grown by 28% since it listed on the JSE and shares are currently worth R68 each. The shares are set to unwind in October 2018.

At listing, YeboYethu held 7 200 000 Vodacom SA ordinary shares and 157 800 000 Vodacom SA A-shares representing a 3.44% stake in Vodacom SA.

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