A company that had become renowned for an unending series of disastrous management decisions, looks finally to be back on course as a management fired by the prospect of huge financial rewards topped market estimates.

In the year to March 31, net income rose 43.5% to 234m pounds ($465.2m) on revenue 3.6% higher at 3.34bn pounds ($6.6bn). The company forecasts that earnings at the EBITDA level in the current financial year will rise at least 38% to a range of 573m pounds to 608m pounds ($1.1bn to $1.2bn).

Chairman Richard Lapthorne claimed that the success of the structural changes made a year ago was there for all to see. He said international had performed well and it had made an encouraging start to the Europe, Asia and US turnaround. We now have sufficient visibility to believe that we’ll deliver on our ambitious targets, he said.

The pace of recovery at Cable & Wireless accelerated during its financial year and on Thursday the telecommunications group announced a rise in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization of 20 per cent to GBP492m.

It predicted it would raise the figure to between GBP573m and GBP608m in the current year. Richard Lapthorne, chairman, said: We now have sufficient visibility to believe that we’ll deliver on our ambitious targets.

C&W is made up of two very different units, and although it has ruled out a demerger, it is difficult to see what, other than the company’s history, ties an international business, in 32 countries in the Caribbean, Panama and a host of other islands, with a Europe, Asia and US operations, aimed principally at corporate customers.

Although falling voice revenue restricted the growth of international revenue to 1% to reach 1.2bn pounds ($2.38bn), there was a 13% growth in mobile revenue and 38% in broadband in immature markets with considerable growth potential.

In its Europe, Asia and US operations, C&W is unusual in bragging that it has reduced its customer base from 21,000 at the start of the financial year to 9,992 at the end as it ripped up its old business plan to concentrate on profitable prospects. The process is still continuing and it plan to reduce the number of customers down to 3,000, concentrating on large corporates, carriers resellers and public institutions.

While this has reduced the operating loss of 214m pounds ($425.4m) to 17m pounds ($33.8m), the problem is that has moved exclusively onto territory dominated by gorillas such at BT Group and will not find it easy competing with outfits with superior economies of scale.

Fatter dividends have helped the share price, which will please the management who will benefit hugely from a substantial increase in the company’s stock market value, currently at 4.58bn pounds ($9.1bn). Despite having once engaged in one of the rashest M&A drives in history, C&W still has 1bn pounds ($1.9bn) sitting in the bank and a corporate stalker looks the most certain way to increase the company’s value.