Seeking Alpha: Turkcell Looking At Short-Term Pain For Long-Term Gain

Neither Turkcell (NYSE:TKC) nor its local rival Turk Telecom (OTC:TRKNY), who operates Avea, have been getting much love in the market and it gets even worse when you factor in the currency moves between the dollar and lira. That comes despite the fact that the Turkish mobile market is actually pretty healthy relative to other emerging markets (South Africa, Russia, the Middle East, North Africa, et al) and there are credible reasons to think that the market will get more rational.

Turkcell at long last managed to hold its annual meeting and pass a dividend, a move that investors were waiting literally years to see. Turkcell being Turkcell, there are still challenges and controversies - Cukurova is trying to gain control of the company via a "shotgun clause" (that the Turkish government could reject), the company is adjusting to a new CEO, the company may be looking to make an acquisition in Ukraine, and the company will be looking at spending billions on new 4G licenses and equipment. While there are definitely some risks that cash could be flying out of the company for the next few years, I think the long-term advantages of the 4G migration outweigh the short-term volatility.

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Turkcell Looking At Short-Term Pain For Long-Term Gain