Top 10 investor backs Vodafone bosses ahead of AGM

A top 10 investor in Vodafone backed management at the world's largest mobile operator on Monday, playing down a brewing investor rebellion over strategy ahead of what is expected to be a difficult AGM.

A source at the investment house said a divergence of opinion over Vodafone's management had been laid bare after one shareholder went public last week with its concerns over how the company had been run.

The source said that in the fund's opinion the management had done "perfectly well" in difficult conditions and said they expected any protest to be limited.

Vodafone reported stronger than expected first-quarter organic service sales on Friday, but the performance was overshadowed by a public complaint from the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, which owns 0.4% of the stock.

The OTPP may also have the support of other shareholders, including UBS, according to another source familiar with the situation. UBS declined to comment.

Meanwhile some analysts feel the company's strategy of owning minority stakes in markets such as France and the United States has resulted in a huge discount between its trading and sum of the parts valuation.

Recent shareholder revolts at retailer Tesco and Cable & Wireless Communications, over pay, both went further than expected and analysts have said the OTPP's decision to go public reflects a growing frustration with the firm.