Shareholders of MTN Nigeria communications Plc and five commercial banks (Zenith Bank, Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank, United Bank for Africa, and Stanbic IBTC Holdings) listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange will receive N101.9bn as interim dividend for the first half of the year.
They were able to declare interim dividends in the first half of the year ended June 30, 2020.
The dividends were paid out of profits earned in the first half of the year.
For the period under review, MTN, in line with its dividend policy, approved an interim dividend of N71.67bn, representing N3.50 per share to be paid out of distributable net income.
Zenith and GT Bank proposed an interim dividend of 30 kobo each, amounting to N9.4bn and N8.8bn respectively, while Access, UBA, and Stanbic IBTC offered an interim dividend of 25 kobo, 17 kobo, and 40 kobo, amounting to N8.47bn, N5.8bn, and N4.2bn, respectively.
Despite the adverse impacts of COVID-19 on the global economy, the Nigerian equities market only recorded year-to-date loss of 4.66 per cent as of September 11, 2020.
This was attributed to “smart investors’ bargain hunting” and the release of good financial results by some of the listed companies along with improved interim dividend declarations in recent times.
Speaking on the banks’ H1 financial results, the Chief Executive Officer of GT Bank, Segun Agbaje said, “These are undoubtedly tough and trying times for people, businesses and economies – the world over.”
