Something strange is happening with the Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS) share price this Friday.
Normally here at the Fool, we cover the price movements of ASX blue-chip shares like Telstra. But today, the Telstra share price isn't doing anything too remarkable. It's presently down by 0.8% at $3.82.
Or is it? You might have difficulty finding a pricing quote for shares trading under the TLS ticker code, Telstra's historic designation.
That's because today marks the first day in a new chapter in Telstra's near-three decades as a public company.
Firstly, the TLS code has gone (temporarily). According to the ASX, Telstra now trades under the code TLSDA. But its name is no longer Telstra Corporation Ltd. Instead, you'll find a company called Telstra Group Limited.
All of this is no accident, of course. It's actually all part of Telstra's restructuring operation. Attentive investors know all of this, of course. The plans were revealed in full back in August when the telco held its 2022 annual general meeting.
The restructure will result in the new Telstra Group sitting at the head of four distinct subsidiaries. These are ServeCo, InfraCo Fixed, Amplitel and Telstra International.
Say hello to new Telstra shares
Under the company's T25 plans, the company is undergoing this revamp in order to "increase focus on its customer and infrastructure businesses, increase transparency of the assets in these businesses, and create greater flexibility and optionality to realise value from the Telstra Group's fixed infrastructure assets over time".
For shareholders, these changes mean little, apart from the changing of the name. All existing shareholders will still own the same number of shares in 'Telstra', with the same level of ownership.
As the company tells investors, "the Corporate Restructure is an internal legal re-organisation and will not, in itself, result in any immediate change to the underlying assets and business activities of the Telstra Group as a whole".
As of today, TLS shares have left the ASX and been replaced with TLSDA shares. But these are merely 'deferred settlement' shares. These will be 'Telstra shares' for all intents and purposes until 1 November. On that day, the new Telstra Group will officially begin trading with the old TLS ticker code.
So don't be surprised if it's harder to find a good share price quote for Telstra today.
