Vodafone first-quarter "solid", says Nomura

(ShareCast News) - Vodafone's first-quarter performance was "solid", Nomura said, with organic revenue growth of 0.8% modestly above consensus of 0.5% and the bank's forecast of 0.7%.It said competitive conditions appear relatively stable and the prospects for further recovery in the second half of the year look reasonable.On the downside, Nomura noted that contract additions are still modest, overall customer numbers are still under pressure in the core markets and churn is seasonally lower in the June quarter.It also pointed out that Vodafone highlighted 50 basis points of headwinds for growth in the second quarter.It added that in terms of growth, the main negative variance for the group was India, as a result of slightly weaker customer growth and tough voice pricing.Nomura has a 'buy' rating on the stock and said: "We strongly believe Vodafone has an opportunity to strike a deal with Liberty Global which can set up the premier convergence operator in Europe and be mutually advantageous for both companies."At 10:20, Vodafone shares were up 3.8% at 240.80p.