Page 99 - Annual Report 2014

investor relations
Ever since we listed on the SGX-ST back in
October 2004, our commitment to good corporate
governance has never wavered.
Our IR team, led by our CEO, holds this
firm and strong belief that it is our duty
to communicate with all shareholders
effectively and regularly. We are
committed to making timely, full and
accurate disclosure to all shareholders.
We run an active IR programme, spanning
the whole gamut of activities from
quarterly briefings to presentations and
meetings with the financial community.
In 2014, we met over 240 investors in
some 200 meetings. While our business is
largely domestic, our shareholders’ base
is international and our IR activities reflect and earnings.
that. While some of these meetings were
held in our home base Singapore, we have
met up with many investors and analysts
in key financial hubs like London and New
York too. In 2014, we added Copenhagen
and Stockholm.
As info-communications is a fast-moving
industry, some investors do have ad-hoc
queries. To this end, we address their
queries and make our senior management
team available when possible, instead of
making them wait till the next quarterly
results announcement.
Our quarterly earnings calls see active
participation by the media, as well as both
analysts and fund managers alike. Over
the years, we have built a great rapport
with many of them. On one hand, we
present the StarHub story; on the other
hand, they help us better understand
how else we can improve our standing
in various aspects like finance, strategy
and operations. This is done via an
independent perception study.
Besides the usual presentation decks,
financial statements, we have also made
it easy for investors or any interested
party to check back in at a later date
with recordings of the calls and even
transcripts of the sessions. Regardless
of how we engage our shareholders,
96 many lives of hubbing
we make sure our message is clear and
consistent, giving them plenty of visibility
and assurance.
For example, since FY2005, we have
been paying quarterly dividends. We
appreciate that our dividend payout is
a key reason why many investors stay
with us throughout the overall market
cycles. Therefore, we have made it a point
to share our visibility on the amount of
dividends we plan to pay, as well as what
influences our decision in case we make
any changes, like reserves, free cash flows
+480%
Cumulative TSR
since FY2005
We have recognised early that there are
some investors who have a mandate to
only own stakes in companies that meet
certain criteria in sustainability. Our overall Accolades and
corporate social responsibility (CSR)
programme includes plenty of related
projects and initiatives, which are visible
ways we demonstrate our commitment to
the wider community. We believe there is
a very comfortable intersection between
what these investors require, and what
we are already doing. More details are
included in our sustainability report.
For the fourth consecutive year, we have
included a sustainability report, which will
not just be a list of CSR activities, but a
report that gives a bigger picture of our risk
management and operational impacts.
Investors’ and Shareholders’
Perceptions
We are constantly looking at ways to
improve our IR activities. One way is
by trying to measure the effectiveness
of our engagements with the investor
community. We have hired an independent
research firm, to gather both qualitative
views and quantitative responses from
key opinion leaders within this field. Based
on the analysis, our Board and senior
management would then try to make the
necessary improvements.
To complement and acquire a clearer
picture of our shareholders’ profile,
we would perform a share registry
analysis after every quarter’s results.
The shareholders’ profile has shown
that outside Singapore, the other top
geographical regions where our investors
are based in are in Asia, the UK and USA.
acknowledgments
We are glad to have received a steady
stream of awards – including at the
regional and global levels, acknowledging
our commitment in IR. In the 2014 SIAS
Investors’ Choice Award, we were named
winner of the ‘Most Transparent Company,
Services Category’. Jeannie Ong was
named ‘Best IR Professional in Singapore’,
at the Asian Excellence Recognition Awards
2014 organised by Corporate Governance
Asia. She also won the ‘Best IR Officer’ in IR
Magazine’s South East Asia awards for the
third consecutive year in 2014.
In the same year, we were included in the
‘Global Top 50 IR’ awards organised by
London-based IR Magazine. This puts
us in the same category as global giants
with market values many folds of ours.
In the same awards, Jeannie was also
named runner-up in the ‘Global Top IRO’,
for companies with market value below
US$7.5 billion.