Vodafone has said it is “building momentum” as the telecoms giant pushes further into the UK market following its £4.3bn VodafoneThree deal and signs of stabilisation in Germany. The FTSE 100 group reported better-than-expected annual revenue of €40.4bn (£35bn) on Tuesday, with investors closely watching whether chief executive Margherita Della Valle’s turnaround strategy is beginning to deliver more consistent growth.
Full Ownership of UK's Largest Mobile Operator
The results come days after Vodafone agreed to buy out CK Hutchison’s 49 per cent stake in VodafoneThree, giving it full ownership of Britain’s largest mobile operator by customer numbers. Della Valle said: “We are building momentum across the Group as our transformation programme continues to improve customer experience, simplify operations and strengthen execution.”
Vodafone has spent the past two years reshaping the business through cost cuts and operational restructuring as a means to improve returns after a prolonged period of weak growth across several European markets. Shares in the company have risen strongly over the past twelve months, as investors backed the restructuring programme and improved cash generation.
Germany Shows Signs of Improvement
Germany remained a major focus in Tuesday’s results after regulatory changes affecting bundled TV contracts hit broadband and television revenues last year. Trends in the market continued to improve after consecutive difficult quarters, the telecoms giant said, easing concerns that weakness in the German market could continue weighing on the wider group.
UK Expansion Becomes Central to Vodafone Strategy
Britain is increasingly becoming the centrepiece of Vodafone’s growth plans following the merger with Three. The group said VodafoneThree would benefit from network integration, procurement savings and expanded scale as it rolls out 5G infrastructure across the UK. Vodafone expects the merger to generate around £700m in annual savings by 2030.
The company also launched a new 5G broadband product this week targeting households outside full fibre areas as it looks to compete more aggressively in the broadband market using its enlarged network footprint. Africa again delivered the strongest growth across the group through Vodacom, supported by demand for mobile data and financial services.
Outlook Amid Industry Pressure
The results come amid broader pressure on European telecoms companies to balance infrastructure spending with rising costs and intense competition. Investors will now be looking ahead to Vodafone’s outlook as the group integrates VodafoneThree and continues its wider restructuring programme.
