State-owned port operator Sihanoukville Autonomous Port (PAS) has announced that it will disburse dividend payments totalling nearly $3 million to its shareholders on June 22.
According to the company’s Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX) filing on June 5, the total dividend amount is 12.17 billion riel ($2.95 million). The dividend payout ratio is 31.12 per cent, of which 9.03 per cent is reserved for Class B shares and 22.09 per cent is reserved for Class C shares.
The dividends will be paid in cash.
CSX vice-chairman Ha Jong-weon told The Post on Monday that the payouts are reasonable at a 31.12 per cent dividend payout ratio. The payout for one Class C share is 403 riel, which is eight per cent of the initial public offering (IPO) price per share.
He noted that the payouts exceeded the guaranteed dividend payout of five per cent of the per-share IPO price.
Ha said: “In the current uncertain global economy, PAS has managed to provide around 2.5 per cent dividend yields [compared to the current market price], which is already a good rate.
“The Ministry of Economy and Finance, which is the largest shareholder and holds Class B shares, received only a 54.92 riel payout per share. That is 82.38 per cent lower than what public shareholders received. This means that PAS has made an effort to cater to the interest of public investors.”
He said the payouts are almost equal to last year’s payouts despite the economic problems created by Covid-19.
Investors who have held PAS shares for the last 12 months will also receive around 20 per cent unrealised capital gain, he said.
Together with the dividend, he said, investors will receive more than a 22.5 per cent gain from their investments in PAS over the last 12 months.
“It shows the strong business potential of PAS during this difficult situation while other types of businesses are seriously impacted.
“Shareholders are satisfied with this dividend. All of them voted for eight per cent of the IPO during the general shareholder meeting on June 5” said Ha.
PAS closed 1.875 per cent higher at 16,300 riel on Monday, with 5,700 shares traded, worth 92 million riel.
