New Telkom chief executive officer (CEO) Sipho Maseko has bought almost ZAR1 million (US$100,000) in shares in the operator, with the value of the company’s stock having increased by almost 60 per cent since a 52-week low in May.
HumanIPO reported in March former Vodacom managing director Maseko had been appointed as CEO, ending a five-month hunt for a new chief after Nombulelo Moholi resigned in November last year.
Maseko bought 52,000 shares yesterday, worth ZAR990,080, on the same day Telkom Mobile cut prepaid voice costs. Shares in the part state-owned operator closed at ZAR19 yesterday, up 59.3 per cent in two months, while the company added 1.37 per cent in morning trade today.
HumanIPO reported in June Telkom had published annual results, which showed a 1.7 per cent drop in operating revenue and 73.2 per cent in headline earnings per share (HEPS).
The poor results came after the operator published a warning in April there would be at least a 20 per cent drop in HEPS, while it also confirmed it had undergone an impairment of its legacy network to the value of ZAR12 billion (US$1.2 million).
Telkom also saw its fixed-line penetration rate drop to 7.3 per cent – 5.2 per cent down on March 2012 – while there were reportsit was set to cut staff numbers and dispose of non-profitable assets as it looked to cuts costs.
In March it was announced Telkom employees were to be offered the opportunity to take voluntary severance (VSP) and early retirement (VERP) packages in a window period, as it began “rebalancing its workforce in line with its strategic imperatives”, though the company denied media reports it was set to cut 13,000 jobs.
