Vimpelcom announced it will not pay a final dividend for 2013 and reduce dividends for 2014, as it focuses on debt reduction and investment in the face of difficult economic and regulatory conditions in its markets. The company paid an interim dividend of USD 0.45 per share in 2013 and previously pledged a pay-out of USD 0.80 per share annually. From 2014, it aims to pay an annual dividend of USD 0.035 per share until its reduces net debt to less than two times annual EBITDA.
The announcement was made at a strategy meeting with analysts in London where Vimpelcom updated its medium-term targets and issued new guidance for 2014. This year it targets stable revenue and EBITDA, net debt at around 2.3x EBITDA by year-end, and capex excluding licences at 21 percent of revenue. At the same meeting a year ago, it issued forecasts for the period 2013-2015 of a mid single-digit CAGR in revenue and EBITDA, net debt below 2x EBITDA by the end of 2015, and capex, excluding licences, of less than 15 percent of revenues by 2015.
The operator also presented its progress on its updated Value Agenda. The plan focuses on increasing cash flow, based on four pillars: profitable revenue growth, led by gaining market share in mobile data and expanding in mobile payment and OTT service partnerships; customer excellence, through optimised distribution and smart pricing; operational excellence, based on cost efficiency; and capital efficiency, through increased network sharing, asset optimization and improved capital structure.
