""I think it is too early to say that. $10 Billion is a lot of debt""
Conservative as always, From ... :-)
But, I happen to agree with you. Still, I don't think we need to go down to 6 billion before we can make that call and share buybacks might be a good idea before that mark as well.
However, I believe it would be better to have higher levels of cash for any M&A. In the end, I think Sunit will do what he always does ... balance the variables in the way that becomes most advantageous in order to achieve the goals that JS has set. I am happy to report that my faith in Sunit is very strong. I would not presume to question or try to second guess these decisions. Now that JC (and more importantly, his cronies) is out of the way and JS's goals seem well aligned with shareholder interests, I'm happy to focus on areas where I have a better view. What I can report, in my opinion, is that LVLT is making the right moves in the areas where I am better better acquainted. I am getting word about potential moves in Asia, and though they are more conservative than I would like, I know enough about Asia to know that caution is warranted, and it is sometimes better to move slow when navigating that particular landscape.
I expect to continue to be happy after this Q's report, but I still do not expect any blow out surprises. I expect good news on the integration with TWTC, but I also know that we are still only inches from the starting gate, and are not going to see what is really in store until at least the following Q. We have gotten more business/contracts, but we are just scratching the surface. T and VZ have been concerned about enterprise for a while, but have recently been more vocal about their plans to "shore up" their position in large enterprise markets. Ask yourself "why" this may be .... and I think you will begin to see a bit more of the iceberg tip. Also, keep in mind that T and VZ, most especially VZ is always at least 2 years ahead on the moves they make. I remember well when VZ started recognizing that wireless was going to supplant wireline POTS (legacy voice). I can assure you it was long before they bought 360 Com. In the late 90's I was in a meeting with the brass, and at that point it had become a company axiom... meaning everyone right down to the ladies on the floor knew where VZ was heading. I think it was not until 99 or 2000 when the Unions started getting all frothy about losing their wirleline membership base... and began fighting for the wireless employees. Anyway, point here is that VZ management are smart, and extremely vision oriented. I consider myself to be quite astute in predicting trends in this sector, but I've had conversations with people at VZ whom I respect well and who have surprised me on more than one occasion. When VZ's plans become public knowledge, you can be darn sure they have known and planned for a long time on the matter, and LVLT's growth of this last year has gotten their attention. True, LVLT is not the only indicator for them ... they already began to worry long before they started losing their T-1's to regional fiber loops in the 90's, but take my word for it when I tell you that LVLT recent progress has been noted.