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Total 152 companies listed on The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) and Market for Alternative Investment (mai) announced a combined interim dividend payment of THB 117.86 billion (approx. USD 3.47 billion) for the first half of 2017, a 23.59 percent increase from H1/2016.
SET Senior Executive Vice President Santi Kiranand said that 152 listed companies (excluding property funds) reported interim dividends of THB 117.86 billion for the first half of 2017, as of August 31, 2017, consisting of 130 SET-listed companies which paid dividends amounting to THB 116.74 billion; and 22 mai-listed companies which paid dividends of THB 1.12 billion. Listed companies traded on the SET50 Index (top 50 large-cap companies) paid dividends worth THB 88.69 billion, representing 75 percent of the total interim dividends.
“The higher net profits of large listed companies have resulted in higher dividend payment of 23.59 percent increase year-on-year. The total number of listed companies which paid interim dividends was still in the range of 150 companies, same as in previous year, reflecting listed firms’ consistency, a positive factor that can attract investors to invest in the Thai stock market,” Santi said.
The top five SET-listed firms with the highest interim dividend payments were PTT pcl (PTT), Advanced Info Service pcl (ADVANC), Siam Cement pcl (SCC), PTT Exploration and Production pcl (PTTEP), and Land and Houses pcl (LH). Their aggregate interim dividends amounted to THB 54.22 billion, or 46 percent of SET-listed companies' total interim dividends by value.
The top-five mai-listed firms with the highest interim dividend payments were Forth Smart Service pcl (FSMART), Bangkok Dec-Con pcl (BKD), The Brooker Group pcl (BROOK), Fortune Parts Industry pcl (FPI), and Arrow Syndicate pcl (ARROW). Their combined dividends totaled THB 648 million, or 58 percent of mai-listed firms’ total interim dividends.
By sectors, the top five sectors of SET that paid the highest interim dividends were the same ones as a year earlier. They were Energy & Utilities, Information & Communication Technology, Construction Materials, Food & Beverage, and Property Development sectors, with combined dividend value of THB 90.4 billion or 77 percent of the total interim dividends value.
