Telkom wants over R60 per share

Telkom CEO Serame Taukobong said the company is worth over R60 per share, and any suitors should see that as a benchmark before making an offer.

Over the last year, Telkom has received corporate action proposals from MTN, Rain, and a consortium led by former CEO Sipho Maseko.

Maseko’s Afrifund had the backing of the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and Mauritius-based Axian Telecom to buy a 35% stake in Telkom.

The Maseko consortium reportedly offered R46 a share for a controlling stake in Telkom, but it was rejected as too low.

Telkom has requested the Maseko Consortium to provide further clarity on several matters, including the proposed offer price and funding certainty.

He added that an independent board had been formed to consider proposals, and they focussed on two things:

• Is the offer reflective of Telkom’s market value?
• Is the entity able to execute its proposition?

These questions have not produced satisfactory answers to date, and Telkom has not accepted any offers.

In the case of the Maseko consortium offer, Taukobong said no due diligence was done, and that is where the matter had ended.

Speaking to The Money Show, the Telkom CEO said they had performed a return on invested capital (ROIC) calculation which puts the implied value at over R60 per share.

“If anybody wants to talk, it has to be done above R60 per share to unlock value,” Taukobong said.