The Vodafone (LSE:VOD) share price increased by 41.4% last year. But its long-term performance has still been quite disappointing.
In fact, over the last five years, the company’s shares have declined by 19.5%.
Right now, the share price is trading at around £0.97. It was at £0.69 at the start of 2025. Can it rise by a similarly impressive performance in 2026 to reach £1.50?
Well, it hasn’t done so since before the pandemic in February 2020. However, it’s not impossible.
Opportunities
Vodafone’s most recent half-year results for FY26 show impressive performance by the company.
While organic service revenue growth in Europe and Germany remains an issue, the company’s growth drivers in Turkey and Africa remain strong.
Organic service revenue grew by 55.6% year on year in Turkey to reach €1.3bn in the period. Its Africa service revenue grew by 13.7% to hit €3.2bn.
In Africa, it now has 94m financial services customers. There are about 1.5bn people on the continent, and if the company is able to capture a similar proportion of the market as it does in Europe and the UK, this could drive up revenue and earnings massively.
Overall, this has contributed to total revenue rising by 7.3% to €19.6bn. Adjusted EBITDA (which includes depreciation of leased assets) also increased by 5.9% to €5.7bn.
Concerns
I have some concerns with the business, though. As mentioned above, service revenue from its largest market in Germany declined by 1.4% to €5.7bn.
This is concerning because it’s a long-term trend. The one caveat is that in the second quarter, it actually picked up by 0.5%, ending many quarters of decline. But it’s still something for investors to be wary of.
Furthermore, currency fluctuations may hinder the firm’s performance as it’s so geographically spread out.
While the organic revenue was impressive in Turkey and Africa, the actual revenue rises of 20.3% and 7.9%, respectively, are far less impressive. This is because of the depreciation of the respective currencies in these regions.
If currency depreciation continues to occur in these growth regions, then the impacts of growth will simply be mitigated. This won’t be good news for investors in its shares.
Prediction
Before making a prediction, it’s important to put the firm’s valuation into context. With a price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) of 15.2 for 2026, I think the Vodafone share price isn’t high at all.
Moreover, the P/E is meant to decline to 13 in 2027 and 11.8 in 2028.
With the average FTSE 100 P/E ratio of 18.2, it suggests a certain level of undervaluation for the company’s shares.
A lot will hinge on its growth drivers, but if it can maintain the revenue and earnings growth that is projected, I think the company’s share price could hit £1.50 by the end of the year.
Therefore, I think investors should consider buying some of its shares.
