BT divi alert . . . as O2 and Virgin Media enter talks

WHO’S next? That’s the question on investors’ lips after oil giant Shell stunned shareholders by cutting its dividend last week, underlining t he impact of the coronavirus crisis on firms.

Shell was Britain’s biggest dividend payer by some distance before it cut its payout for the first t i me since t he Second World War.

Now all eyes are on BT, the telecoms giant, as it reveals its annual results on Thursday. Chief executive Philip Jansen resisted calls when he joined last year to cut the dividend so BT could spend more on its fibre network.

But now the world is a very different place and investors will be wondering whether he has changed his mind in the wake of a string of dividend cuts from others to cope with the pandemic, including French telecoms operator Orange.

But there could be an even greater threat down the road.

BT and rival Vodafone could face stiff competition from a bigger rival after it emerged mobile operator O2, owned by Spain’s Telefonica, and cable company Virgin Media, owned by America’s Liberty Global, are in talks over a multi-billion pound merger that could be unveiled within days.

HUGE numbers of companies have gone to their i nvestors cap i n hand asking for more funds in recent weeks.

But not Trainline, the online rail ticket booking site.

Even though everyone except key workers has stopped using public transport, the company believes it has enough cash in the bank to survive the crisis without asking investors for more.

That was helped when Train line secured an agreement from its banks not to call in a £350 million loan until August 2021.

On Thursday, the company unveils its annual results and is expected to give clearer guidance on trading for this year, having been unable to do so in March.

IT WAS only a few months ago that the thousands of small shareholders i n Sirius Minerals were up in arms after the company agreed to a cutprice sale to mining giant Anglo American.

The £ 405 million takeover was far less than the level most of them bought shares at.

But the company had warned i nvestors t hat without a deal, it would inevitably go bust.

If the takeover hadn’t been given the green light, a City source points out that there is little chance Sirius would have survived the current coronavirus crisis.

That s houl d pr o vi de some crumbs of comfort to former Sirius Minerals shareholders who may be feeling short-changed.