Telenor announced plans to increase its dividend pay-out as well as leave room for more investment. At its annual Capital Markets Day in Fornebu, the company said it would pay 50-80 percent of normalised net profit as a dividend next year, up from its previous policy of 40-60 percent. It also increased its target for net debt, to up 2.0 times EBITDA from the previous level of 1.6, suggesting the company may want to take on more debt to pursue acquisitions or investments in current operations such as its Indian venture Uninor. The group also reiterated its targets for capex at around 10 percent of sales and operating expenses at less than 35 percent of sales in 2013. CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas said the company will grow "through a relentless focus on operational excellence", leveraging its scale and making sure best practices are replicated across the group.
