SWM is a very well run company, but in a very difficult...

SWM is a very well run company, but in a very difficult industry. Top of the ratings, producing quality programs that are in high demand, starting to make good progress into digital, etc. Management can't be expected to have done much more. But the degree of difficulty is high, with the general progression to digital hitting all its businesses, and newspapers and magazines in particular.

No-one can really predict the future of free-to-air TV and newspapers/magazines except that over some time frame they will be replaced by other technologies. But demand for quality content will continue to grow regardless of the delivery mechanism, and SWM management have invested well and successfully into content generation. And hopefully their investments into digital delivery will pay off longer term as well.

If you are holding SWM in the hope that it will grow at 10%+ pa then you are probably in the wrong stock. But if you are holding in the hope that it will keep generating 6 to 10 cents dividends every year for many more years then the quality of management provides a reasonable chance you will be rewarded. Not guaranteed, and the difficult industry is the reason the market has marked it down so low, but the likely yield at current prices should provide a floor.

I hold for yield long term so don't really care in what time frame a price recovery occurs. In that context I am happy, but understand the frustration of those that have a shorter time frame or who bought at higher prices. Just don't slag off at the company for your buying into the industry they are in.