The latest Investing Matters Podcast episode featuring Jeremy Skillington, CEO of Poolbeg Pharma has just been released. Listen here.
Because I am planning to top up heftily on Friday the price is bound to go up this week so Rob can you put me down at 126.5. Thank you.
I have a question for the techies on here: why is it that when a share like VOD has been down in in the dumps for a long period it is possible for people to still be selling? Are they locking in losses in a panic or have they been lucky enough to buy in at the very bottom? But even then there is currently little room for a profit margin. But surely most holders got in at much higher prices. Why are people not holding like most of us are doing? What am I missing ? Has it got to do with short selling? I am mystified. Cheers and if the price goes up strongly this week thank me :)
I like what CSDI is saying. This is beginning to look oversold and could bounce back 10% or so before long. I'll wait until after div payday and plan to buy the further dip then. The sentiment towards VOD remains weird. The average rating by 21 analysts currently stands at 1.56, with 18 rating it a buy or strong buy and no sell recommendations. Do people here pay attention to analysts and tipsters or do we consider all crystal ball gazing pointless speculation?
Thank you Dan for the drink offer. I tend to avoid alcohol (although one day my VOD share holding will depress me so much that I will relapse) but for now I'll drink a glass of water to your good health.Cheers!
From what I read (pun not intended) in this chat the impression is formed that people seem to think that CE Nick Read is solely responsible for strategy, performance and results. But what about the role of the VOD board and its committees? In large companies such as Vodafone, the board’s role is to provide entrepreneurial leadership within a framework of effective controls which enable risks to be assessed and managed. The board establishes the company’s purpose, values and strategy and satisfies itself that these and its culture are in alignment. It is responsible for ensuring the necessary resources are in place for the company to meet its objectives and for measuring performance against them. The board is accountable for promoting the long-term sustainable success of the company, generating value for shareholders and contributing to wider society.
So it seems a stretch to heap all of VOD’s woes onto Read’s shoulders. He is just a large cog in the works and the board as a whole must share in collective responsibility. In any case changing CEOs doesn’t necessarily result in improvement. Other factors play a larger part. Taylor Wimpey recently appointed a new CE, who is a good manager, but the share price has nose-dived regardless. As for Read’s remuneration you could certainly say that 3 million is a lot of money but hardly higher than the FTSE 100 average salary. Moreover, compared to some chaps who kick a ball around on a Saturday afternoon or play golf or tennis, it’s peanuts. Call it the ‘unacceptable face of capitalism’ if you like.
Fleccie
£ 140.00 !! Senior moment or bad typo I am afraid. Sorry that I have cost you millions.
Dan. Good summary of most factors explaining VOD's erratic progress. I sympathise if you have been suffering this for 20 years. No, my breakeven figure does not include divi income. Even if I added it in it still wouldn't give me a profit due to capital loss on large holding. Because of the repercussions from the pandemic and the ghastly Russia/Ukraine war we'll probably have to be patient a little while longer.
Robleo
£1.90 is still a stretch but it's pleasing that you are staying optimistic. I think you are right. Companies the size of Vodafone are unlikely to go to the wall and should deliver in the long run when the market as a whole recovers.
Friday predictions - thanks for the admin. Can you put me down for 131.5
Robina: "Looks to me like 130p is a barrier for this telco behemoth. If 130 gets passed then it heads back down quickly."
Yes, slowly climbing and falling back quickly is what this share is very good at. I have had a long, tortuous relationship with VOD. I went in heavily some 8 years ago when the share price was at around 2.20 believing (and being told by 'experts' that 5G would transform the mobile industry and providers would greatly benefit. Then the price started drifting down. Because I kept believing that 5G would sooner or later come to the rescue I did the 'trying to catch the falling knife' thing and kept averaging down. Now 8 years later I have a sizeable holding and my breakeven price is £ 140.00, getting better but still a way to go. Trouble is I'm in my 80ties and long waits could be my undoing.
Thank you Mikey. But in fairness I also read a lot of common sense and positivity from Dan. Let's all try to get along and wait patiently for Vodafone to give us some returns in the end. Miracles do sometimes happen. Cheers!
Thank you Robleo for kinder response than Dan's No I don't say don't bother because anything could happen otherwise I would have stopped investing decades ago. It's hard to have a strategy coping with eventualities, a chrystal ball would help but I do try to second guess where the dangers might lurk. Best.
Steady on Dan. No it has not taken me 50 years to become aware of the importance of events but I thought it would be worthwhile to make the point because often all that is talked about is financial management, balance sheets etc.
"Not sure why it’s nonsense to point out VOD’s refinancing figures. The bonds are all there on the VOD website. You can calculate it yourself.
It’s a point to consider for long term investors. VOD may do well as a company but that debt has the potential to erode earnings improvements.
Just something to consider, long term"
Mole-man
Analysis and balance sheets of course have their place but if there is one thing I have learnt in more than 50 yrs of investing it is that extraneous unforeseen developments have more impact than sound financial management. As McMillan said: 'Events, dear boy, events" Take the the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010 that cost BP more than 60 billion dollars and from which their share price still hasn't recovered. Then there's Petrofac, doing well until they were heavily fined by the SFO following a bribery scandal. Other examples of sudden unanticipated calamities abound. A similar setback could happen to any company at any time and Vodafone would be no exception. There already have been cases of idiots setting fire to mobile phone masts, linking 5G technology to the spread of Covid. If such hysteria were to spread widely then think of what it would do to the share price. For these reasons investing remains a hazardous business regardless of the soundness of a companies accounts.
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