MTN results for their full year to December

MTN results for their full year to December. Right where analysts expected the results to be, 754 cents per share worth of earnings. On an adjusted basis, excluding the impact of functional currency losses, as it is put in the results: up 8,5% to 878,9 cents. All very nice to tell someone what it would have been, if there had not been, I shall go with the headline number thanks. Bear in mind that this is a Quality Street of Vestact, we like it a lot. Dividend of 192 cents per share.



OK, other MTN numbers. Revenue up 9.2 percent to 111.9 billion Rands. Subscribers 116 million, that seems slightly higher than folks anticipated. Divisionally, South Africa tough, in their own words, Nigeria performed well, Iran grew their subscriber base enormously.



And here is the real kick in the chops though, from the results release: Currency movements affect the income statement through translated earnings, functional currency adjustments and the effect of the written put option held by a minority shareholder in MTN‘s Nigerian subsidiary. The ZAR closed 21% stronger at R7,39 to the USD on the 31 December 2009, compared to the closing rate of R9,35 the year before, R9,49 in March 2009 and R7,72 in June 2009. Translation of earnings affected by movements in the various local currencies to the USD was compounded in the second half of the year by the strong ZAR.



Many investors miss why one would like to own a stock like MTN. Utterances like, oh well the market here in South Africa is saturated, leads me to believe that for those types it is all about voice. It is not. It is about data. Usage of existing sms services to do more things, like mobile money in East Africa, which is *HUGE*. Listen to this too. We almost fell off our chairs here. Iran has a population of 72.5 million people. Got that. MTN have been here for around three years. There are three mobile operators. Got that. MTN have 40 percent of the market. Nice. Iran is already has 80 percent mobile saturation. Can't use the other word.



In three years 80 percent of the population have phones, admittedly the state operators before had not done a good job. You don't have to go to the presentation like Byron, you can see it online. MTN Group Limited Final audited results for the year ended 31 December 2009.