Starcomms

[zainabusman]

Originally Posted by waaan5

One lesson for us in the recent past is that the era of paying a premium just to get a pp is over. In fact all the struggle (and pledges) to get into a pp is proving not to be worth the effort. Just wait for them to list and you can get your fill. And this new rule that the list at the pp price is also greatly making chasing pps a worthless effort. I think it is a good thing.

I agree. Unless the PP is at such a bargain then it is not worth it.

[zainabusman]

Originally Posted by realdeal

In general what are you thoughts of Starcomms as compared to reltel? Are these CDMA players a threat to GSM companies with the universal licence? Is Starcomms a properly run company? I know they have investment from Actis and ECP

I do not know much about the Telecoms competitive environment. My comment that it will go up on day 1 is based on demand and supply. I dont expect those who bought in the PP to be in a hurry to sell at 13.65. What will be available is the 5% required by NSE.

The world over Telecoms is very competitive and capital intensive. The Nigerian landscape is not all that different.

I did not invest i starcomm because the finacials did not impress me. Go through earlier threads and go through the financials posted. It might help u in deciding whether starcomms is worth it at the current price.

[kenebobo]

Does anybody have any idea of the number of units that was listed? the number of units traded daily is quite alarming.

[hispy99]

Originally Posted by kenebobo

Does anybody have any idea of the number of units that was listed? the number of units traded daily is quite alarming.

6.878B shares

[faoogoke]

Please someone take this thread away as the shares have already been listed. Thanks.

[kenebobo]

Originally Posted by hispy99

6.878B shares

That is quite much, no wonder the huge volume that is traded on daily bases. I just hope they utilize the money properly.

[solainvest]

Originally Posted by kenebobo

That is quite much, no wonder the huge volume that is traded on daily bases. I just hope they utilize the money properly.

You are right. It is a lot. I am optimistic they will utilise it well. I reckon it will hit N10.

The market is in a bearish mood and short termers that bought into it are not able to realise their objective. They will dump it and move to the next one (if any). The company does not intend paying dividend for 2 years and so the only gain for anybody will be capital gain or loss.

[kenebobo]

Originally Posted by solainvest

You are right. It is a lot. I am optimistic they will utilise it well. I reckon it will hit N10.

The market is in a bearish mood and short termers that bought into it are not able to realise their objective. They will dump it and move to the next one (if any). The company does not intend paying dividend for 2 years and so the only gain for anybody will be capital gain or loss.

That is really a long time to wait for dividend. I am not interested in it for now because this stock falls into the class of stocks that are unpredictable. Today investors may buy it for its future prospects tomorrow they may decide to dump it because of its dividend payment in 2 years time.

[Babs_O]

Originally Posted by kenebobo

That is really a long time to wait for dividend. I am not interested in it for now because this stock falls into the class of stocks that are unpredictable. Today investors may buy it for its future prospects tomorrow they may decide to dump it because of its dividend payment in 2 years time.

The price experienced a fall of 4.03% today. Has dumping started or why the drop ?

[BLUEMONEY]

Originally Posted by Babs_O

The price experienced a fall of 4.03% today. Has dumping started or why the drop ?

Well i dont think there is any other explanation. short term investors are doing what they know best to do and that is to short (sell).

[solainvest]

http://www.financialnigeria.com/NEWS...aspx?item=2695

[hispy99]

Originally Posted by solainvest

I actually thought they still had some holding left. I didn't know they sold everything....... The guys made 3 times their money (interesting!!!!)



ECP Sells Entire Position in Starcomms Nigeria
( 22.07.08 )

Exit represents nearly 3x firm's initial investment, highlights strength of mobile telecommunications in Africa
Emerging Capital Partners LLC (ECP), an international private equity firm focused on investing across the African continent, today announced the sale of its entire position in Starcomms, a leading Nigerian mobile telecommunications operator. ECP's exit was made through a private placement of the company's shares. The shares were then listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), making Starcomms the first listed Nigerian telecom company on the NSE. The exit represents 2.9x ECP's initial investment, with total proceeds of U.S. $99.1 million.

ECP made its initial investment in Starcomms in 2005 and committed additional capital over the next two years for a total investment of U.S. $34.3 million. ECP's investments helped Starcomms expand its telecom infrastructure and grow its customer base from approximately 100,000 subscribers to 1.5 million. Today, the company is Nigeria's fourth largest telecom operator and the largest CDMA 3G mobile operator.

"Over the course of ECP's investment period, Starcomms has become more competitive in the Nigerian telecom sector and has significantly grown its subscriber base," said Hurley Doddy, chief operating officer of ECP. "We are proud to have worked with such a well-governed, world-class operator while the company expanded its national footprint, developed new services, and generated top corporate business accounts."

ECP invested in Starcomms alongside Actis, an emerging markets private equity fund manager. Actis invested in Starcomms at the same time as ECP and on the same terms and conditions. The firms, whose goals in terms of liquidity and governance were similar, structured the voting interest in Starcomms to be separate from the economic interest. ECP and Actis controlled the company by retaining a majority of the voting rights while holding a minority of the economic interest.

"ECP has been an important strategic partner for Starcomms," said Maher Qubain, chief executive officer of Starcomms. "The firm helped us improve our management, operations and corporate governance and enabled us grow to the point that the company is now ready to be publicly traded. We look forward to continuing to build upon this base of success as we move Starcomms into the next stage of its growth."

ECP's investment in Starcomms was made through the firm's AIG African Fund Infrastructure Fund. The U.S. $407 million fund was established in 2000 to invest in infrastructure and related industries in Africa. During its commitment period, the fund invested primarily in telecommunications, natural resources, agribusiness, transportation, and power and water.

Emerging Capital Partners (ECP) is the first private equity group to raise more than US$1.5 billion for investment in companies across the African continent. The firm's investment strategy is focused on delivering consistently above-market returns to investors that are uncorrelated to the U.S. and other global economies. Today, ECP has an eight-year track-record of investing in Africa.

Good for them...the PP was expensive in my own opinion

[ttoladele]

Originally Posted by hispy99

Good for them...the PP was expensive in my own opinion

Starcomms shed 4.99% today, closing lower @13.14 naira, below the PP offer price!! Now the market is becoming more tempting, where are the Bulls???? I will go for this one at the ?right price

[balaliyu]

Be patient......wait for <N10

[Babs_O]

Originally Posted by hispy99

Good for them...the PP was expensive in my own opinion

I noted it too earlier in the thread that it looks expensive judging by price to book. Not surprised at the reap-off of profits by ECP, main reason is telecoms market is getting more competitive and ECP will most likely not get a third of returns they enjoyed so far in the years. There is even a risk of loss. Thank God I followed my fundamental thinking and never touched it.

[ttoladele]

starcomms went further south by 4.79%, there is massive selling pressure. Now fingers are getting burnt in PP. Omatek, Tantalizers etc now selling under their PP prices. I empathise with those who are loosing money but cannot get out fast because PPs tend to lock vulnerable investors in unlike the secondary market where you are in more in control. It is a bitter lesson for all.

[kenebobo]

Originally Posted by ttoladele

starcomms went further south by 4.79%, there is massive selling pressure. Now fingers are getting burnt in PP. Omatek, Tantalizers etc now selling under their PP prices. I empathise with those who are loosing money but cannot get out fast because PPs tend to lock vulnerable investors in unlike the secondary market where you are in more in control. It is a bitter lesson for all.

Starcomms would continue to fall if the market continues in the Negative territory.

[hispy99]

Originally Posted by kenebobo

Starcomms would continue to fall if the market continues in the Negative territory.

ECP, Actis exit Starcomms

ECP, Actis exit investment in Nigerian telecom company Starcomms

[threecrown]

The company, which listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, has invested $600 million in its network since it began operations in Africa’s top oil producer in 2002.
Starcomms wants to increase its 1 million subscriber-base to 2.5 million by year-end, to 5 million next year, and 50 million by 2010, Maher Qubain told Reuters in an interview.
"We need to expand before the congestion hits us, in order to capture the significant momentum of opportunities," Qubain said. The wireless network should expand to 90 locations by 2010 from 17 cities currently.
"Between when we started and 2009, we will have spent over $1 billion. We have a very ambitious expansion plan," he said.
The firm looks to increase its revenue to 91 billion naira ($771 million) by 2010 from an estimated 39.46 billion naira this year.
Starcomms also hopes to boost its profit to 10.50 billion naira, compared to a 197.62 million naira loss in 2008.
The company, which operates a fixed wireless network on the CDMA platform, is one of several wireless operators that have acquired a unified licence to offer the full complement of roaming voice, Internet and data services.
The basic fixed wireless licence in Nigeria allows operators to offer mobile services within limited areas, such as Lagos, but no roaming between cities.
Qubain said listing Starcomms on the bourse was part of a growth strategy to raise funds for expansion and allow more investors to benefit from its growth.
Before the listing, Starcomms, which hopes to arrange an initial public offering in the future, had raised about $500 million through a private placement of its shares.
The company is controlled by the Lababidi family, with a 47 percent share, while leading private equity investors in the emerging markets Actis and ECP Africa each have 26 percent.
Africa’s most populous country of 140 million people is one of the world’s fastest-growing telecoms markets, with a penetration rate of just 30 percent, compared with 76 percent in the more developed South African market.
Internet penetration rate is only 6.75 percent, according to International Telecommunications Union statistics.
But Nigeria’s growth potential was being stunted by high overheads, poor infrastructure and lack of access to the SAT-3 underwater cable, Qubain said.
SAT-3, which is run by the troubled first national telecoms carrier Nitel, is the gateway for international calls and Internet connections to Africa’s most populous nation.
"As the driver and main broadband Internet service providers, we are restricted by having no access to SAT-3. That is a very key issue the government should look into," he said.
Qubain said the absence of a policy on infrastructure sharing by operators was another problem the telecoms regulator needed to address to boost growth in the sector.

[solainvest]

We can conclude that Starcomms is spending this much too...

Zain powers operation with 450 litres of diesel every second – CEO

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