Vodafone Group (VOD)
A telecoms group most UK investors have owned at some point, usually at a loss. After three years of disposals it is a smaller, simpler company — and for the first time in eight years it raised its dividend.
The business
Vodafone sells mobile and fixed-line connectivity. Revenue is spread across Germany (roughly a third), Africa (about a fifth), the UK (under a fifth), the rest of Europe and Turkey. Germany and Africa matter more to the outcome than the UK does, which surprises most British shareholders.
The last three years have been a shrinking exercise: Spain and Italy sold, the UK business merged with Three to form VodafoneThree (Vodafone holds 51%), Telekom Romania Mobile acquired. FY26 group revenue was €40.5bn against €37.4bn the year before.
The numbers that matter
All figures as reported on the dates shown. Nothing on this page updates with the share price — the live valuation sits in the app.
| Measure | Latest reported | |
|---|---|---|
| Group revenue, FY26 | €40.5bn | from €37.4bn |
| Operating profit, FY26 | €2,844m | from a €411m loss |
| Adjusted free cash flow | €2,621m | capital-hungry sector |
| Net debt | €25.4bn | up from €22.4bn |
| Dividend per share | 4.6125¢ | first rise in 8 years |
| H1 FY26 service revenue | +8.1% | includes Three UK |
The moat
Weak, and worth being honest about. Mobile networks have high fixed costs and real barriers to entry, but in most European markets three or four operators compete on price for a service customers treat as a commodity. That is the opposite of pricing power.
Where something moat-like exists it is in Africa, where M-Pesa gives Vodafone a payments network with genuine switching costs, and in the newly merged UK business, where consolidating four operators into three reduces the number of players competing on price.
What to check before you value it
Free cash flow against the dividend
Telecoms is capital-hungry. Adjusted free cash flow was €2.6bn in FY26. Compare that to what the dividend costs before assuming the payout is comfortable.
Net debt
Net debt stood at €25.4bn at FY26, up from €22.4bn. Debt is the central question for any telecoms group, because interest competes directly with the dividend for the same cash.
Whether growth is organic or acquired
Revenue rose partly because Three UK was consolidated in. Consolidation flatters the top line without necessarily improving the business.
The dividend record
Vodafone cut its dividend in 2019 and again in 2023. The FY26 increase was the first rise in eight years. A single increase is not yet a record.
Recent filings
Dated announcements only. Figures below were reported on the dates shown and are not updated as the share price moves.
How Oak Growth scores it
Oak Growth runs a discounted cash flow on Vodafone Group and publishes the assumptions behind it — the discount rate, the growth rate and the terminal value — alongside a margin of safety against the live price. It also scores the company on the four pillars: moat, management, economics and value, in that order, because price comes last. The live figures sit in the app rather than on this page, so nothing here goes stale.
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Is Vodafone a good dividend share?
Vodafone raised its dividend in November 2025 for the first time in eight years, having cut it in 2019 and again in 2023. Adjusted free cash flow was €2.6bn in FY26 against net debt of €25.4bn. Whether the dividend is safe depends on cash cover and the debt trajectory rather than on the yield.
Why has Vodafone's share price been so weak for so long?
European mobile is a competitive, capital-intensive business where operators largely compete on price. Vodafone also carried substantial debt and cut its dividend twice. The recent recovery followed a strategy of selling businesses, merging the UK operation with Three, and buying back shares.
What is VodafoneThree?
The merged Vodafone UK and Three UK business, completed on 31 May 2025 and owned 51% by Vodafone and 49% by CK Hutchison. It reduced the number of large UK mobile operators from four to three, which generally supports pricing.
Where does Vodafone make most of its money?
Germany is the largest single market at roughly a third of revenue, followed by Africa at about a fifth. The UK is under a fifth. Vodafone's results are therefore more sensitive to Germany and Africa than to the UK.