EDP, Portugal´s larget utility, is paying since Thursday EUR 695 million in dividends to its shareholders. A fifth of the total, around EUR 150 million, will go to China Three Gorges (CTG), the largest shareholder, according to EDP.
Despite a slight drop in profits last year, to EUR 512 million, investor remuneration remained stable compared to the previous year (0.19 euros per share). CTG holds almost 785 million shares of EDP, which correspond to 21.47% of the company’s capital.
EDP´s main shareholders include Spanish fund Oppidum Capital (7.19%), BlackRock, Alliance Bernstein, State Street Corporation, Paul Elliott Singer, Sonatrach, Qatar Investment Authority, Norges Bank, BCP and The Capital Group Companies. Small shareholders (47.28% of the capital) will receive EUR 328.5 million in dividends.
CTG has received total dividends of EUR 1.34 billion since it invested in EDP in October 2011. The dividends received until now are close to half of the investment made when entering EDP’s capital – 2.69 billion euros. The chinese utility also cashed in on EUR 292.9 million in February by selling part of its shares. Another chinese State investor, CNIC, sold its stake for EUR 175,6 million.
EDP’s 2019-2022 strategic plan indicates that the current 19 cents is the minimum amount to be payed to shareholders in the coming years, as well as that the payout ratio of profits is between 75% and 85%
“For the next year, the idea is to maintain the stability of the dividend policy. Of course it will be evaluated, but taking into account what we know at the moment and what the forecasts for 2021 are, we predict stability, “said CEO António Mexia, after the general shareholders’ meeting.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this year, Portugal´s Securities Market Commission (CMVM) called for companies listed in its main stock index (PSI-20) to pay attention to long-term sustainability and transparency in the information transmitted to shareholders about the impact of the pandemic, while the possibility of stopping shareholder remuneration was even raised in Parliament.
