Dividends are a crucial yardstick of financial stability in Nigeria, offering shareholders a reliable source of passive income.
Typically, large dividend payouts are hallmarks of mega-corporations with robust revenue streams and stable cash flows.
Investing in these firms presents a dual advantage: Shareholders not only stand to gain from capital appreciation but also benefit from consistent cash payouts.
In the fiscal year of 2022, 71 publicly traded companies in Nigeria, spanning diverse sectors like banking, telecommunications, and consumer goods, collectively disbursed over N1.5 trillion in dividends.
Industry leaders such as Dangote Cement, MTN Nigeria, Zenith Bank Plc, and others topped the list, their payments originating from a combined net income of nearly N2.76 trillion. They proposed a combined N1.15 trillion in dividends in 2022 alone.
This trend highlights the lucrative potential of investing in the Nigerian stock market, offering both passive income and the prospect of capital growth.
In the following analysis, we delve into the specifics of the companies leading in dividend distributions for 2022.
Access Holdings – N53.32 billion
Access Holdings has consistently paid dividends, and for the 2022 financial year, they declared a total dividend of N1.50 per share, comprising an interim dividend of 20k and a final dividend of N1.30 to its N35.545 billion shareholders amounting to N53.32 billion in dividend
- The dividend payment from Access Holdings reflects a 50% year-on-year growth rate, and it makes up 35% of the bank’s profit after tax.
- Despite a 5% decline in profit after tax, which decreased from N160.22 billion in 2021 to N152.20 billion in 2022, Access Holdings has maintained its commitment to dividend distribution.
- This consistency aligns with their average annual growth rate of 33.75% in dividend payments over the past five years.
Airtel Africa – N78.46 billion
Airtel Africa announced a total dividend of $0.05 per share (combining interim and final dividends) for the 2022 financial year ending March 2022. When converted using the prevailing exchange rate, this translates to N20.88 per share, resulting in a total dividend payout of N78.46 billion.
- The telecommunications giant, which is the third most capitalized company in the stock market with a market capitalization of over N4.698 trillion, reported an impressive 82% increase in profit after tax, reaching $755 million in 2022, compared to $415 million in the previous year.
- For the financial year ending in March 2023, Airtel Africa paid a total dividend of 5.45 cents per share, consisting of 2.18 cents as an interim dividend and 3.27 cents as a final dividend. When converted using the prevailing exchange rate, this amounts to N31.97 per share, totaling N120.4 billion in dividend payments. This represents a substantial 53.13% year-on-year growth compared to the previous year.
- The growth in the dividend value in Naira is not only due to the increased dividend per share but is also attributed to the growth in the prevailing exchange rate, which rose from N419.5 per dollar in 2022 to N680.2 per dollar in 2023. This exchange rate change contributed to the significant increase in the dividend amount paid to shareholders.
- According to the disclosure released by the company on the NGX, the final dividend was scheduled to be paid on or around July 26, 2023.
- Typically, the dividend is paid in US dollars, although Airtel Africa plc provides shareholders with the option to choose to receive their dividend payments in either GB pounds or Nigerian naira through currency elections.
BUA Foods – N81.00 billion
BUA Foods, in its inaugural year of listing, declared a total dividend of N4.50 per share to its 18 billion shareholders for the 2022 financial year.
- The dividend payment of N4.50 per share by BUA Foods for the 2022 financial year represents approximately 88.68% of the company’s profit after tax.
- This significant payout is supported by the remarkable growth in BUA Foods’ profit after tax, which experienced a substantial year-on-year increase of 30.93%, reaching N91.34 billion.
- BUA Food’s impressive dividend return makes it one of the most impressive debuts on the NGX
GTCO – N91.24 billion
The restructured banking giant declared N91.24 billion in dividends for the 2022 financial year, a payout representing 53.93% of its N169.17 billion profit after tax for the year.
- GT Bank’s dividend distribution consisted of an initial interim dividend of 30 kobo during the first half of the year, followed by a final dividend payment of N2.8.
- This resulted in a total dividend per share (DPS) of N3.10, reflecting a 3.3% increase compared to the previous year.
- The final dividend payment to its shareholders was paid on May 11, 2023, having been subjected to appropriate withholding tax.
- It is noteworthy that GTCO decided to increase its dividend payout despite experiencing a decline in profit.
- The bank reported a 3.24% decrease in profit after tax, dropping from N174.84 billion in 2021 to N169.17 billion in 2022. This marks the second consecutive year of declining profitability for the bank.
BUA Cement – N94.82 billion
BUA Cement, one of Nigeria’s top cement producers in terms of volume, declared a total dividend per share of N2.80 for the 2022 financial year.
- The dividend payment represents a 7.69% annual growth rate compared to the previous year. It is noteworthy that BUA Cement has consistently increased its dividend payments over the years, as evidenced by its five-year average annual growth rate of 12.4%.
- The dividend payment from BUA Cement represents a significant portion of the company’s profit after tax for the year, accounting for 93.87% of its PAT, which is the highest payout percentage among other companies in comparison.
- BUA Cement reported a 12.14% increase in its profit after tax, to reach N101.01 billion compared to the N90.08 billion recorded in the previous year and paid out N94.82 billion in dividends.
Zenith Bank – N100.47 billion
Zenith Bank, a tier-1 banking giant, announced a total dividend per share of N3.2k for the financial year ending December 2022.
- This represents a 3.23% increase from the N3.1k paid in the previous year. The bank’s total dividend payment amounts to N100.47 billion for its 31.39 billion outstanding shares listed on the NGX.
- Zenith Bank reported an 8.44% decrease in its profit after tax, falling from N244.56 billion in 2021 to N223.91 billion in 2022.
- Despite a decrease in profit, Zenith Bank maintained its dividend consistency by paying out 44.87% of its net profit as dividends to shareholders for the financial year.
This commitment to dividends has been upheld over the past five years, resulting in a total dividend payout of N14.90 during this period.
MTN Nigeria – N317.5 billion
Telco giant, MTN Nigeria declared and paid a total dividend of N217.5 billion to its shareholders from its profits in 2022.
- The company declared an interim dividend per share of N5.60 and a final DPS of N10.00, bringing its total to N15.60 per 2 kobo ordinary shares for its 20.35 billion listed shares.
- The dividend payment in 2022 represents an 18.90% increase compared to the N267.05 billion (DPS: N13.12) paid in the previous year.
- A further check also shows that the company paid 87.83% of its profit for the year to its shareholders as dividends.
- MTN Nigeria also posted impressive numbers as its profit after tax jumped by 17.43% from N306.82 billion recorded in 2021 to N361.53 billion in the review year.
Dangote Cement – N340.81 billion
The cement manufacturing giant declared a total dividend of N340.81 billion to its numerous shareholders based on a dividend of N20 per share for its total 17.04 billion units of shares listed in the stock market.
- The dividend of N20 declared in the 2022 financial year is the same as the previous year, despite a 4.9% increase in its profit after tax, which rose from N364.4 billion in 2021 to N382.311 billion in 2022.
- The dividend payment made in the 2022 financial year represents 89.14% of the profit made in the year.
- Dangote Cement also operates a share buyback program and purchased shares valued at N41 billion in July 2023.
Others on the list include Nestle Nigeria (N48.75 billion), Stanbic IBTC (N45.35 billion), UBA (N37.62 billion), etc.
