StarHub is a ‘quad play’ telecommunications (telco) provider that delivers services in mobile, fixed broadband, pay TV and enterprise solutions. The liberalisation of the Singapore telco industry has seen the entry of five virtual telcos and TPG Telecom – which won the bid to become the country’s fourth major telco. In total, there are now nine operators offering mobile subscription plans in a market of 5.6 million people. The heightened competition has seen a price war erupt among players with each offering more data at ever lower prices in a bid to win (or protect) market share. As a result, StarHub’s profit has fallen over the last few years, accompanied by steady drop in share price: Chart: Google Once favoured by investors for its steady dividend, StarHub also an

Living in Singapore, it’s unthinkable not to have internet access. While majority of us already have access to internet via our mobile phones as well as in the office, we still have to subscribe for a home broadband that provides unlimited usage for everyone in our household. Read Also: [Cheatsheet] The Best SIM-Only Plans in Singapore (2019 Edition) When it comes to choosing the best broadband plan for our home, there are six main players in the market. No. Internet Service Provider (ISP) 1 M1 2 MyRepublic 3 SingTel 4 StarHub 5 ViewQwest 6 WhizComms   When applying for a home broadband service, there are two types of fees that you may be charged, outside of what the internet service provider charges: What Is The NLT Service Activation Fee? We have to pay $56.71 fo

Do shares of Singapore Telecommunications Limited (SGX: Z74) or StarHub Ltd (SGX: CC3) give you better bang for your buck? Find out here.

When Jewel Changi Airport welcomed its first visitors on 11 April, all the attention and media coverage were on the F&B outlets such as A&W and Shake Shack and the epic queues they brought. Today, on 10 June, marks another milestone in Changi Airport’s crown jewel history: Canopy Park, Jewel’s hitherto closed tenth floor, will open its doors to the public for the very first time. Canopy Park is made up of four attractions, namely — Discovery Slides, Foggy Bowls, Petal Garden, and Topiary Walk. There are also other places of interest such as the Manulife Sky Nets and the Changi Experience Studio. These are all paid attractions that cost money to enter. If you are not looking to spend any money except on A&W coney dogs or other food, there are also attractions with fr

Investors need to look at these three useful operating metrics to be able to size up Starhub Ltd's (SGX: CC3) business better.

Daiso is known for selling all their products at $2. This June holidays, we can expect many families shopping at Daiso to buy affordable, high-quality items before travelling. Daiso heat packs are a well-known to-buy item. But beyond heat packs, here are 18 useful items you can buy — whether you are flying for work, recreation, or a long exchange programme. Before You Fly #1 Vacuum seal storage bags for clothes Have you ever had to squeeze so many clothes in your luggage that you thought that your zip would burst? These storage bags help you save space by reducing the size of fluffier articles of clothing. After the bag is sealed, no air gets in or out of the bag and you are left with a compact, easily stowable pack. #2 Dial lock for luggage In Singapore, we enjoy a level of safety tha

Starhub (SGX: CC3) has been through tough times amid the impending entry of a fourth telco. So does it look cheap for investors right now?

With an increasing number of large-cap S-REITs trading at or approaching relatively unattractive yield and price-to-book value, DBS suggests investors to look towards alternative dividend plays. Here are five companies that DBS has identified that fit along this theme. Investors Takeaway: 5 Alternative Dividend Plays Frasers Property: Best Dividend Play Among Developers Among developers, Frasers Property offers the highest dividend yield of five percent. This is coupled with an attractive 0.7 times price per NAV for Frasers Property. Its strong recurring income profile as a landlord in the commercial space that is strengthened by its recent catalysts: Acquisition of PGIM Real Estate Asia Retail Fund, news on interested parties to acquire its newly completed Frasers Tower, and the latest

In Singapore, the rollout of the 5G network by 2020 is looming. Should SingTel (SGX: Z74) and StarHub (SGX: CC3) start to fret given the amounts of investment required?

In recent times, more people are choosing to watch TV shows online instead, thanks to the convenience offered and proliferation of programmes available. If you are planning to ditch traditional TV and get started on online video subscription services, you may be a little overwhelmed by all the options available. We break down what each video subscription service offers in terms of aspects such as prices, programmes, and live streams, so that you can make the best choice for yourself. Netflix Source: Techgoondu.com Netflix launched in Singapore in January 2016. While there was some early dismay around Netflix Singapore’s comparatively shallow library, it has since grown to feature an extensive library of feature films, documentaries, TV programmes, and anime. The pricing structure of Net

It’s that “uh-oh” feeling for investors as StarHub share price faces another torrid run following the release of a terrible 1QFY2019 results that saw net profit plummeted by 23% on a year-by-year basis. Investors must be having that sinking feeling again and wondering when will StarHub share price ever see daylight again. The problem for StarHub share price is that it tends to shoot itself in the foot. In February 2019, StarHub share price corrected from $1.94 to $1.610 following the release of a dismal FY2018 results and the cut in dividends for FY2019. Since then, StarHub share price had struggled to maintain its form. With the latest results, surely the counter will go into yet another tailspin. Given the latest financial performance, it takes an ardent fan of StarHub to have con

Facebook, Instagram, YouTube. There are plenty of bandwidth hungry apps that consume massive mobile data. It's pretty addictive. I guess it's a form of lifestyle inflation? Or is it a practical reality of digital norms, a sign of "progress"?And so TPG (https://www.tpgmobile.sg/) appeared on the local scene, coming in as the 4th Telco. The net effect was that my Singtel shares went south, somewhat. Starhub is already struggling from their self-induced escalating impact of high dividend payout in the past. And M1 was taken private.The saving grace is that TPG is offering a one year $0 plan as they aim to seize market share, even as they are gradually rolling out their network. Really, ZERO. Coverage is not great for now. But can't complain right? It is ZERO.I signed up and got my hands on th

#wpcdt-cndtn-wrp-1 .wpcdt-timer-title, #wpcdt-cndtn-wrp-1 .wpcdt-timer-description, #wpcdt-cndtn-wrp-1 .wpcdt-complition-wrap{color:#000000;}#wpcdt-cndtn-wrp-1{padding:25px; background-color:#ffffff;} Registration Closes In: Financial Analysis Made Easy: Step by Step Guide to Financial Ratios Date: 2nd May 2019, Thursday Time: 7:00pm to 9:00pm Venue: Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre I normally conduct advanced courses on value investing so this workshop is quite different as its aimed at beginners. The upcoming workshop will be absolutely crucial for what I am going to teach for future classes. You don’t need to be an expert in reading financial reports. But you do need to understand simplified financial ratios. I am going t

I been known to wear many hats, from writing about personal finance, index investing, wealth management, financial independence and commentating on all the affairs surrounding me with regards to money. The way that I been doing my wealth accumulation is through active individual stock investing. What that means is that, I spend my time prospecting the stocks in Singapore, Hong Kong to find stocks that I can invest for long term, to speculate on the short term in order to accumulate my wealth. As part of demonstrating the great benefit of my Stock Portfolio Tracker, you can have a glimpse of my current portfolio through the demo as well. You may have read some of my past write up on whether M1 and Starhub is a value trap, or the Transportation business of ComfortDelgro. People give it a lot

I’ve gotten a couple of questions about the course: How is this different from the other courses you have taught such as Deep Value Detector? My previous courses were focused heavily on banks and property developers & landlords. It can be considered an advanced course for people who already have experience with fundamental analysis. Financial Analysis Made Easy is targeted at people who are newer to investing, or may be unfamiliar or confused with all the different financial ratios and want to know what is actually important. I don’t have any prior financial experience. Will this course be too much for me? Absolutely not! The workshop targeted at lay people and I have crafted it such that concepts are explained simply. I will be teaching the framework that I use to evaluate goo

Thanks to everyone who attended our webinar last night. I will be posting the slides to it later this week. I will be conducting a live workshop early next month to help investors better understand financial ratios and how to interpret them. Financial Analysis Made Easy: Step by Step Guide to Financial Ratios Date: 2nd May 2019, Thursday Time: 7:00pm to 9:00pm Venue: Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre Focus on what is important One of the biggest challenges I see investors face is the lack of a strong foundation when it comes to looking at stocks. Knowing how to do simplified financial analysis is crucial to pick winning stocks, and more importantly, avoid losing stocks that can be fatal to your investment portfolio. I will help simplify financial analysis for you in our u

If you are re-contracting your phone plans in recent months, you would have observed that your data bundle have gotten real attractive.  This is probably the result of intense competition due to entry of a 4th telecom operator TPG. Before, they start offering their paid package, and as they are testing out the quality of their network, the incumbents are starting an intense price war.  Not just that, the mobile virtual network operators (MVNO) such as Circles Life, Zero, MyRepublic and Zero1 are also offering some really competitive packages.  As a consumer, this is a good thing because these corporate tyrants are finally kowtowing to you at the expense of their margins.  What I do find refreshing is that the MVNO operators are catering to selected usage segments that t

With the earnings season over, we will summarize the ups and downs of every REIT/ investment trust and rate their financial performance in this six-part series. To begin the series, here are four of the most disappointing trusts that let investors down in the latest quarter. Investors Takeaway: 4 REITs/ Investment Trusts That Let Investors Down This Quarter OUE Hospitality Trust With the absence of income support for Crowne Plaza Changi Airport, OUE Hospitality Trust saw its DPU decline by 2.9 percent year-on-year. That being said, the hotel was still receiving minimum rent from its master lessee in FY18 and improving its operational performance. With the ongoing ramp-up of Terminal 4 as well as opening of Jewel Changi Airport in 1H19, CIMB believes that Crowne Plaza Changi Airport will

Institutional investors are organizations that manage large pools of money – including mutual funds, pension funds, banks, insurance companies or hedge funds – and unlike retail investors, they are the ones which have the financial muscles and positions often large enough to dictate the direction of the markets. As William O’Neil, founder of Investor’s Business Daily and author of best-seller “How to Make Money in Stocks” wrote in his book, “It takes big demand to push up prices, and by far the biggest source of demand for stocks is institutional investors. These large investors account for the lion’s share of each day’s market activity.” Hence, savvy investors regularly look at the funds flow of institutional investors, or often referred to as the “smart money”

Overseas data used to be an expensive luxury that most of us think wistfully about as we bounce from one public wifi hotspot to another, struggling to stay connected for long enough to respond to the flurry of WhatsApp messages that flood our phones. But because of the proliferation of high-speed 4G networks around the world and comprehensive network sharing agreements, we can now remain connected and reachable by our loved ones – and our bosses – with prices that are relatively affordable. Read Also: [2019 Edition] Best Unlimited Data Mobile Plans In Singapore (Plus: Which Plan Gives The Most 4G Data Per Dollar?) For those wondering, here is a cost comparison of the mobile data roaming services of three of Singapore’s largest telcos, and the wifi hotspot service provided by Changi