Ck Hutchison acquires 100% of Wind Tre. The Hong Kong giant bought the remaining 50% stake in the Italian operator from Veon for 2,45 billion euros.
The transaction "will be immediate and highly positive to both earnings and cash flow per share of CK Hutchison," the CK Hutchison said in a statement.
“We are pleased – comments Canning Fok, co-Managing Director of Ck Hutchison – to become the sole owners of Wind Tre, which offers us the strongest possible platform to increase value for our shareholders”. Ck Hutchison, he continues, “hopes to continue investing in Italy's digital future, to the benefit of consumers and businesses across the country”.
The agreement will have to be approved by the regulatory authorities in the EU and in Italy. The agreement should be concluded in the third quarter of 2018.
In 2017, the 50% ownership of Wind Tre contributed one billion euros to the ebitda and more than 800 million to the operating ebit pertaining to the Hutchison group. In going up to 100%, Hutchison expects "strong earnings for years to come, boosting earnings per share and representing excellent shareholder value."
Veon, announcing the agreement reached with Hutchison and the purchase of assets from GTH, underlines that, thanks to this sale, it will be able to reduce its debt. In detail, upon completion of the transaction, the company expects "a pro-forma net debt ratio of approximately 1,8 times, significantly lower than our target ratio of 2,0". The group has taken "two critical steps towards the goal of simplifying the structure and increasing shareholder value". “We want to increase value for our shareholders through a more targeted and optimized portfolio,” said Ursula Burns, executive chairman of Veon.
