31-10-2012 — /europawire.eu/ — Outlook for 2013-2014: the Group expects 2013 operating cash flow of more than 7 billion euros which will return to growth in 2014
outlook for 2013 and 2014
results for the third quarter 2012
Commenting on the results for the first nine months of 2012 and the outlook for 2013 and 2014, Stephane Richard, Chairman and CEO of France Telecom-Orange, said:
“The Group delivered solid results for the third quarter enabling us to confirm our operational cash flow target for 2012. This was due to a decidedly improved commercial performance in France compared to the first half, as well as the contribution from Spain and countries in Africa and the Middle East which continue to drive the Group’s growth.
In 2013, operating cash flow will face additional downward pressure due to the significant pricing impact of a fourth player entering the French mobile market, and a macroeconomic and regulatory environment that will continue to be challenging. Measures begun in 2011 to deal with these multiple shocks will be expanded on in 2013. These measures include a more aggressive commercial pushback, improved offers, exploration of new growth areas as well as the careful management of our cost base. As a result, we can realistically envisage a return to cash flow growth in 2014.
This will be achieved while fully respecting our social contract and continuing our investment in the deployment of very high speed broadband networks – fibre and 4G – particularly in France where we confirm our 2 billion euro FTTH deployment plan which runs over the period from 2010 to 2015. We will preserve the Group’s financial strength, assuring its independence and its ability to prepare for the future. Accordingly, we are adjusting our shareholder remuneration with a dividend for both 2012 and 2013 of at least 0.80 euros per share, which remains attractive in the current conditions. I am very confident in the ability of the men and women of France Telecom-Orange to meet these challenges. We have both the means and the ambition to do so.”…
about Orange
France Telecom-Orange is one of the world’s leading telecommunications operators with sales of 45.3 billion euros for 2011 and has 170,000 employees worldwide at 30 June 2012, including 105,000 employees in France. Present in 33 countries, the Group has a total customer base of 224 million customers at 30 June 2012, including 166 million mobile customers and 15 million broadband internet (ADSL, fibre) customers worldwide. Orange is one of the main European operators for mobile and broadband internet services and, under the brand Orange Business Services, is one of the world leaders in providing telecommunication services to multinational companies.
With its industrial project, “conquests 2015”, Orange is simultaneously addressing its employees, customers and shareholders, as well as the society in which the company operates, through a concrete set of action plans. These commitments are expressed through a new vision of human resources for employees; through the deployment of a network infrastructure upon which the Group will build its future growth; through the Group’s ambition to offer a superior customer experience thanks in particular to improved quality of service; and through the acceleration of international development.
France Telecom (NYSE:FTE) is listed on Euronext Paris (compartment A) and on the New York Stock Exchange.
For more information (on the internet and on your mobile): www.orange.com, www.orange-business.com, www.orange-innovation.tv or to follow us on Twitter: @presseorange.
Orange and any other Orange product or service names included in this material are trade marks of Orange Brand Services Limited, Orange France or France Telecom.
###
press contact
+33 (1) 44 44 93 93
(IN BRIEF) The Australian Government has granted feasibility licences to Ørsted for its first offshore…
(IN BRIEF) Wood, a prominent consulting and engineering firm, has secured a new 23-month contract…
(IN BRIEF) NatWest Group and the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) have joined forces to…
(IN BRIEF) Garanti BBVA International, a subsidiary of Garanti BBVA known for its sustainable financing…
(IN BRIEF) Britt Meelby Jensen, the CEO of Ambu A/S, is nominated to join the…
(IN BRIEF) The latest EY CEO Outlook Pulse survey reveals a nuanced perspective among CEOs,…