Telstra’s Looming Earnings Hole

Telstra, the robot farming company? Did I read that correctly? Yet this was back page news last week. Surely such a project is a distraction for Australia’s largest telecommunications company. Why would management be throwing resources at robot farming equipment? And for that matter, why does Telstra employ a chief scientist? The answer: to fill its looming earnings hole. Telstra knows a lot about digging holes. But by far the biggest hole the company faces relates to future earnings. Once NBN payments start to wind down in about five years’ time, Telstra will need new earnings streams to replace declining fixed line profits. To fill this hole, Telstra has embarked on a number of ventures including health and robot farming. But can they become large enough to fill the earnings hole? Read the full blogpost (VIEW LINK)