A City brokerage believes there is little near-term prospect of a deal between Vodafone (LON:VOD) and the American giant Liberty global - a possibility certain investors and traders have factored into their buying assumptions.
Instead, the house reckons the stock will remain range-bound, while the business faces the threat of a financially draining price war flaring up in Europe once again.
City newcomer Haitong Research gives four major reasons why the long-mooted Liberty deal is off the table leading with this: “[The] chief executive said so again at a conference last week.”
That would appear pretty conclusive, then.
But warming to his theme, analyst John Karidis said: “Liberty believes it does not need M&A to keep growing its value apace in the next three years (this will be by extending its cable networks and by holding down fixed costs).
“[It] says it may buy mobile networks only if they are cheaply priced and where Liberty’s cable footprint covers much of the national market. Lastly, it regards its asset in Germany as a ‘crown jewel’ so this is not for sale.”
Staying cautious he rates the stock ‘hold’ with a fair value of 220p a share.