It has certainly been a volatile year for shares of BT Group from a fundamental and technical perspective. The stock itself collapsed towards 200p, something which was hardly surprising given the aftermath of the Italian scandal and the falling of CEO Gavin Patterson on his sword.
What may be interesting going into 2019, ahead of seeing what the new CEO will do, is how the void will be filled initially by the Chairman Jan Du Plessis. His CV will be relevant in terms of the rich history of possible corporate activity, especially with reference to his time as Chairman at SABMiller and the subsequent takeover of that company two years ago.
In terms of what we may see over the next few months, key to the equation is Deutsche Telekom, and the end of the lock out period with reference to the company being able to add to its existing holding. Indeed, it is now free to average down on its original £4.50 stake. We will then no doubt find out what Deutsche Telekom’s intentions are toward BT Group, clearly something the market may be wondering as well?
This along with turnaround hopes may explain the recovery in the shares over recent months. The hope now would be that recent resistance in the 250p -270p are will be cleared, a sign early in the New Year that positive M&A events could be on the way, courtesy of the UK telecom giant’s German counterpart. DT paying as much as £3.50 for further interest in BT Group, could be signalled by a sustained clearance of the 270p zone, especially in current falling stock market conditions.