France Telecom "hold"

06/21/07 - Dresdner Kleinwort Wasser.

LONDON, June 21 (newratings.com) - Analysts at Dresdner Kleinwort maintain their "hold" rating on France Telecom (FTE). The target price is set to €22.

In a research note published this morning, the analysts mention that France Telecom and a private equity firm, Mid Europa Partners, are set to acquire Connect in a joint venture deal for €1.4 billion. France Telecom is characterizing the deal as an optimization of minority holding in Connect rising from 17.5% to 35%, aided by a simplification in ownership, the analysts add. The company would extract €70 million of cash from the deal, Dresdner Kleinwort says.