“Adverse regulatory outcomes in India and the onset of COVID-19 in the fourth quarter,” resulted in a challenging fiscal year, Singtel Group Chief Executive Officer Chua Sock Koong said in the statement. Singapore Telecommunication Limited (SGX: Z74), or Singtel, is Singapore’s largest telco and a long-time dividend payer. The lower dividend “is a negative surprise for the street,” Arthur Pineda and Hussaini Saifee, analysts at Citigroup Global Markets Inc., wrote in a note to clients. SINGTEL may cut its dividend payout from the current "unsustainable" rate to S$0.13-$0.15 per share for its next fiscal year starting April 1, 2020 (FY2021) in order to maintain its credit rating, DBS Equity Research said in a report on Thursday. IHS Markit's senior research analyst Wong Chong Jun, however, said Singtel is unlikely to cut its dividend for FY2021. - Bloomberg, More articles on Good Articles to Share >>, Individual or Group chat with anyone on I3investor, Perform Technical & Fundamental Analysis on Stocks, Trump says US election winner might not be known for months, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi calls for global cooperation at UN, Asia meetings, Covid-19 panic-buying forces UK supermarkets to ration goods, Covid-19 fears push European stocks to worst week since June, The Equity Market Index Benchmark in Malaysia, MQ Trader - Introduction to MQ Trader Affiliate Program, Top Glove Investment: Is the EPF trading or investing?- A Misconception, EPF stake buoys Top Glove's rise as Covid-19 cases climb, 'THE GREATER FOOL THEORY By Dr Neoh Soon Kean (Excerpts from STOCK MARKET INVESTMENT), Calvin Tan comments. The telco has either maintained or raised its dividend every year for the past two decades. However, a key operating metric, the average revenue per user (ARPU), declined by 11.1 per cent year on year from $33 per month to $30. Singapore Telecommunications Limited, or Singtel, released its full fiscal year 2020 earnings this morning. Singtel shares dropped as much as 4.2% in Singapore, the biggest drop since May 4. At Singtel's last traded share price of $2.53, this represents a trailing 12-month dividend yield of around 4.8 per cent. 198402668E, It says pegging dividends to underlying earnings instead of fixed quantum will relieve Singtel's balance sheet burden. The carrier booked a charge for costs … The telco had a total of 4.28 million mobile subscribers at end-2020, 2.1 per cent higher than the 4.19 million it had a year ago. The Singapore-based carrier on Thursday said it took a net exceptional charge of S$302 million for costs related to Bharti Airtel’s spectrum fees. The telco has either maintained or raised its dividend every year for the past two decades. Against a more competitive business backdrop, the cut in dividend yield is not surprising to me. Mobile revenue suffered due to movement restrictions and lockdowns. Maintain BUY on SingTel with a lower target price. The India-based carrier has faced airwave and license fees after the country’s operators lost a court case. That compares with the S$1.28bil average of analyst estimates. SINGTEL STOCK: DIVIDEND CUT? Support us and give our facebook page a 'like' or 'share' if you like the articles here! Speaking in Parliament in February last year, Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat said the NIRC is the largest contributor to Singapore's revenues, larger than any single tax, including the goods and services tax, and corporate and personal income taxes. Singtel's ability to generate strong free cash flow has allowed the company to support its dividends, Mr Wong added. In its report, DBS also trimmed its forecast for Singtel's FY2020 and FY2021 earnings by 5 per cent and 3 per cent respectively, taking them to 10 per cent and 8 per cent below analysts' consensus. Source of the report is credited at the end of article whenever reference is made. Better showing at its associates; looking for Australia and SG market repair. Contributions from government investment company Temasek are included in the Net Investment Return Contribution (NIRC) framework, a key component of government budgeting. IEDGE-FACTSET GLOBAL INTERNET INDEX: INVEST? Singtel may cut its dividend payout from the current "unsustainable" rate to S$0.13-$0.15 per share for its next fiscal year starting April 1, 2020 (FY2021) in order to maintain its credit rating, DBS Equity Research said in a report on Thursday. You will need to make your own independent judgment regarding the analysis.