Yesterday Poste Italiane closed on a good note (+2.4%) boosted by the words of CEO Matteo Del Fante, according to whom there is room for improvement when it comes to the dividend policy. ‘I think the margins are there,’ he said in an interview with Il Sole 24 Ore. ‘The space for a revision of the payout is there, we will see with the business plan.’ Del Fante explained that, in autumn, Poste Italiane will present an industrial plan with a ten-year perspective. The basis for the future will be the renewal of a labour contract – expiring at the end of the year – which will require more flexibility from the 25,000 letter carriers.
Talking points
The conversation with the CEO of Gruppo Poste Italiane included many talking points ranging from Poste’s international strategy, which also looks abroad, to the transformation of the role of letter carriers, passing through the new Industrial Plan, the relationship with Amazon, the performance of Poste Vita and the management, in addition to deliveries, of the warehouses of business customers (with the first agreements already signed with Tim and the Acqua e Sapone chain).
Key Steps
Observers focus on two other key passages in the interview. When asked about the possibility of new acquisitions, Del Fante explains that ‘the acquisition phase is slowing down, we will try to be opportunistic while consolidating what we have acquired’ and ‘we are planning to improve efficiency in the real estate management of the logistics centres covering over 600,000 square metres. A tender was launched to choose a partner and manage this asset in a market-oriented manner. We will transfer the assets, which have a market value of around 700 million, into a fund managed by an SGR (società di gestione del risparmio – asset management company). We are looking for a partner of up to 50 per cent who has the skills and is willing to invest with us. We are currently at the expressions of interest phase: Generali, DeaCapital, Coima, Bnp Paribas, Kryalos, Investire, Colliers, and Prelios are in the running’. Hence the assumption of being able to improve the dividend policy: ‘Growth remains a crucial objective for us,’ the CEO assures, ‘the return for shareholders is implicit with growth, including profit. That said, I think the margins are there: when I arrived in 2017, I reduced the payout from 80 to 60 per cent. The company has grown in the meantime and we do not have to put more resources into Poste Vita, quite the contrary, actually, so there is room for a revision of the payout. We will see with the business plan.’
Positive messages
In summary, Equita analysts explain, these are ‘positive messages, particularly the decision to optimise the real estate portfolio and the possible increase in payout‘. The experts at Banca Akros define the insurance, parcel and payment business as “key levers for the realisation of the Plan, thus enabling the company to maintain a solid cash and capital position, as well as to ensure a still attractive and sustainable dividend yield (around 7.5% on average)”. And that is not all. The rebalancing of the cost base towards a more variable component, flexibility in the management of the investment portfolio and ‘the group’s experience in managing human resources costs should protect the targets from unfavourable scenarios’. The analysts conclude that Poste, is ‘well positioned to capture well-defined and emerging business opportunities such as parcels and payments, which have been materially accelerated by the 2020 pandemic’. Purchases rewarded the stock at Piazza Affari.
