Citi downgrades BT to 'sell', expects Openreach revenue decline
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Tuesday 18 Feb 2025
(Sharecast News) - BT Group slumped on Tuesday as Citi downgraded its stance on the shares to 'sell' from 'buy' and cut the price target to 112p from 200p as it said that Openreach was facing a revenue decline.
"We forecast Openreach turning to revenue decline in 2025/26 and staying there for the rest of the decade, which could see a negative shift in sentiment and questions as to whether BT will achieve its guidance for £3bn of normalised free cash flow by the end of the decade (Citi 2029/30E £2.3bn)," the bank said.
"We also have concerns around the sustainability of BT Consumer's pricing dynamic in the long-term, and based on our in-depth consensus tracker analysis, we also believe that consensus is overoptimistic in expecting restructuring specific item costs to reduce significantly in the next few years (Citi 2025/26E £401m versus consensus £250m)."
Citi also said it was adding BT to its focus list.
At 0910 GMT, the shares were down 5.6% at 143.05p.
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