Vodafone Decade of Patience Was a $125 Billion Virtue

Vodafone’s payout from a decade-long dance with Verizon Communications over the fate of their US wireless joint venture was worth the wait. By holding off until now to sell its 45 percent stake in Verizon Wireless, Vodafone secured $130 billion, adding to more than $15 billion in dividend payouts since the venture was formed in 1999.

With Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. estimating Vodafone’s initial investment at $20 billion, the company is getting as much as $125 billion more than that for a sixfold return, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. By holding onto its stake in Verizon Wireless, the most profitable U.S. mobile-phone operator, Vodafone benefited from an almost quadrupling of revenue in the last decade. A deal was reached at an ideal time because growth may be challenged as the wireless unit faces tougher competition for subscribers in a saturated market, said Guy Peddy, a London-based analyst at Macquarie.