Diverse Income Share Discussion Threads

[willie33] 18/10/2016 10:50

Advice please, does Direct Line actually pay a dividend of 14% or is this wrong. Thanks.

[tony773] 18/10/2016 10:34

Waldron,

many thanks for your reply,

[waldron] 18/10/2016 10:04

WELCOME tony

depends on your propensity to risk especially currency impact

shares seems expensive at present

certainly home in on blue chips portfolio paying resonable divi


imo avoid funds

will get back to you

take care

[tony773] 18/10/2016 09:02

I must admit this thread is very good and very informative,,, well done to all,

now that I have been paid off, ( oil industry ) I need income from shares as I am getting SFA from banking, so

can you if you have time, give me a definitive list of shares / funds to have a go at

regards and best wishes to you all

[waldron] 18/10/2016 08:28

Citywire Money > News
Brexit boost to dividends may not last, report warns
The pound's plummet since EU referendum increases value of overseas dividends by £2.5 billion but shareholder pay-outs look vulnerable.
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by Michelle McGagh on Oct 18, 2016 at 08:00
Brexit boost to dividends may not last, report warns

Dividends have increased £2.5 billion due to the plunging pound, bringing cheer to income investors but the boost is not the full story.

The weakness in sterling seen since the EU referendum saw dividends reach £24.9 billion in the third quarter, according to the latest Capita Dividend Monitor.

The total amount of dividends paid out has risen 1.6% year-on-year to shrug off £2.2 billion in cuts that hit over the period, mainly from the mining sector.

The underlying dividend total, excluding special dividends, increased 2.6% year-on-year to £23.9 billion.

The increase in pay outs has come from the large dollar and euro-denominated dividends that are paid by multinationals such as Shell, HSBC and Unilever. When translated into sterling, the dividends become much more favourable and led to the £2.5 billion currency gain, far above the £1 billion predicted by Capita post-Brexit.

Capita said it was the largest exchange rate effect in any quarter since the financial crisis when the pound slumped from over $2 in 2008 to $1.38 in 2009.

Adding to the currency benefits was a final payment from drinks giant SAB Miller (SAB) +

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, which paid its dividend just before its acquisition of AB InBev. It paid a dividend of £1.2 billion in August, 28% higher than last year and although the large sum reflected the plunging pound, in dollar terms the dividend was still 8% higher.

As oil prices continue to rise, oil producers also increased pay outs by 23%, with an additional £790 million ‘seemingly at odds with the sharp decline in profits at BP (BP) +
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and Shell (RDSA) +

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’, said Capita.

However, the increase was due mainly to the effects of the more generous dividends being paid by new Shell shares issued when it took over BG.

While oil producers increased dividends, the biggest dent came from mining, with cuts from Glencore (GLEN) +
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, BHP Billiton (BLT) +
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, Rio Tinto (RIO) +
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and Anglo American (AAL) +

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. Collectively the companies aid out £1.9 billion, down 68% on last year despite a 20% boost from weak sterling.

Capita said further cuts are still in the pipeline as the mining sector ‘rebases dividends to reflect the lower commodity prices, but the worst is now behind us’.

Overall, 25 sectors increased payouts compared with the 14 that saw them fall, although those cutting dividends made a ‘disproportionately large impact’.

Justin Cooper, chief executive of shareholder solution at Capita Asset Services, said investors are set for another currency windfall next quarter.

‘In the short term, the pound’s fall is super-charging UK dividends,’ he said. ‘We estimate that Q4 will see another currency windfall of almost £1.7 billion, taking the total for 2016 to over £5.6 billion.’

The expectation for increased dividends ‘explains why FTSE 100 share prices have been strong so far in the second half of 2016’, said Cooper, and ‘as the translated sterling value of cashflows earnings in foreign currencies rises, so the sterling value of share prices moves upwards in lock-step to reflect the devaluation of the pound’.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, the fund and pension broker, said ‘mathematically’ the Capita predictions for further windfalls were right as ‘40% of dividends are paid in US dollars’, such as Shell, BP and the large pharmaceutical stocks.

On the surface, dividend payments look attractive but Capita said stripping out the positive affects of currency exchange reveals a disappointing picture, affected by high profile dividend cuts.

Pay outs were actually 0.1% lower year-on-year in the third quarter as weak profitability in the UK’s largest companies and growing pension deficits made it difficult to increase dividends.

Cooper said he expected more cuts in the fourth quarter and ‘without this devaluation…underlying dividends will fall in 2016’.

The dividend landscape is being overshadowed by multinational companies and Cooper said ‘the UK’s largest companies are easily overshadowing better growth among the mid-caps’.

Mid-cap dividends outperformed the top 100 again, continuing a two-year trend, rising 4.9% to £2.7 billion, compared to 0.9% growth in the top 100 companies.

Capita said mid-cap companies have been ‘more insulated from the succession of negative trends to hit the profits of the top 100’, including weak commodity and oil prices, banking sector difficulties and supermarket price wars.

Mould added that dividend growth ‘assumes that companies stick to their dividend plans and do not cut them’.

Although currency is helping increase dividends, as is a rising oil price which is feeding dividends from BP and Shell – which between them make up a fifth of dividend payments in cash terms – Mould was concerned about dividend cover.

He said dividend cover was ‘worryingly thin’ and 48% of FTSE 100 firms have earnings that cover their dividends by less than two times.

‘I think we have to be careful because dividend cover is very thin,’ he said. ‘Last year payout ratios as a percentage of net profits was at an all-time high of 75% when long-run you do not want to see that above 50%.’

Mould said he wanted to see dividend cover of 2.5x-plus as it ‘gives companies the slack to pay dividends in the long-term’ if there is a recession or problem within the company.

‘If you start with low dividend cover then there could be cuts [to the dividend if something goes wrong],’ said Mould. ‘We have seen 12 or more cuts in dividends in the past 18 months.’

[waldron] 17/10/2016 14:16

Sterling's fall super-charges dividend payments
13:15 17 Oct 2016
Dividend pay-outs rose 1.6% year-on-year in the third quarter, with FX gains more than offsetting a wave of big cuts by the miners
Pound coins
Simply put, mid-cap profits have outperformed those of the big boys, and that is enabling them to grow their dividends more rapidly, Capita said.

It has been often been said that reinvesting dividends is the key to long-term investment success, so the good news is dividends are generally rising.

Capita Asset Services, the share holding registrar services arm of Capita PLC, has released its dividend monitor for the third quarter, which showed dividend pay-outs were up 1.6% to £24.9bn. Strip out special dividends, and the increase is even larger: +2.6% at £23.9bn.

Delve a bit deeper, however, and it becomes evident the figures are flattered by the pound’s weakness in the July-September quarter, which boosted pay-outs converted into sterling to the tune of £2.5bn. This more than offset the £2.2bn of dividend cuts that went through in the quarter, £1.9bn of them from companies in the mining sector, where the prolonged slump is really hitting earnings and cash reserves.

According to Capita, around two-fifths of dividend payments are declared in US dollars or euros, so any “RemoanersR21; who also have a broad selection of dividend-paying stocks can take some solace in the fact that the EU referendum decision probably helped their dividend income.

Capita points out that the Bank of England cut interest rates in August and further loosened its monetary policy, making dividend income look even more attractive to investors.

With the FTSE 100 hitting new highs, the market’s yield has contracted to 3.6% from 3.7% in the second quarter, but compared to the rate available on the typical savings account, that is an attractive return, albeit one that is not guaranteed.

“Weak profitability among the UK’s largest companies, including large losses for some, as well as growing pension deficits, has made it difficult for them to increase what they pay to their shareholders. The dominance of those huge multinationals is, however, obscuring more positive news from those lower down the rankings,” Capita cautioned.

Payments from mining giants Glencore, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Anglo American tumbled, despite being declared in foreign currency, and further cuts from the miners are still in the pipeline, Capita observed.

Rolls-Royce’s dividend cut meant the aerospace sector’s reputation as a solid provider of income also took a knock.

Overall, 25 sectors increased pay-outs compared to 14 that saw them fall, but those cutting dividends followed the advice given to batsmen wen playing limited overs cricket: if you are going to slash, slash hard.

The top five companies by market value accounted for 36% of the total amount paid out in dividends, with Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSB) comfortably retaining its crown as king of the dividend payers: this year, Shell will account for a little over £1 in every £8 paid by UK-listed companies, Capita said.

The 15 biggest companies accounted for almost two thirds of pay-outs, but if it is dividend growth you are chasing then the FTSE 250, rather than the FTSE 100, is the place to look.

Dividends paid out by FTSE 100 companies rose 0.9% year-on-year to £21.7bn, while those paid out by FTSE 250 companies rose 4.9% to £2.7bn; stripping out special dividends, the year-on-year growth is an even more eye-catching 11.5%.

Simply put, mid-cap profits have outperformed those of the big boys, and that is enabling them to grow their dividends more rapidly, Capita said.

Looking ahead, Capita said the pound’s fall is super-charging UK dividend, and the registrar services provider predicted that the fourth quarter will see another currency windfall of just shy of £1.7bn, taking the total for 2016 to £5.6bn.

“While exchange rate gains looks set to support UK PLC dividends well into 2017, investors will need a sustained improvement in company profitability in order for the true value of pay-outs to regain solid upward momentum,” Capita said, noting in passing that the weaker pound has already boosted confidence among exporters.

Excluding special dividends, Capita now expects underlying pay-outs to reach £78.6bn, an increase of 2.7% year-on-year.

“Without the devaluation of the pound, underlying dividends would have fallen in 2016. Indeed, the exchange rate remains the main source of uncertainty over dividends in the fourth quarter and into next year. If it continues to fall, 2016 will exceed even our newly revised forecast,” Capita said.
John-H.jpg
John Harrington

[waldron] 05/9/2016 18:13

THE HAGUE, the Netherlands, September 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc ("RDS") (NYSE: RDS.A)(NYSE: RDS.B) today announced the pounds sterling and euro equivalent dividend payments in respect of the second quarter 2016 interim dividend, which was announced on July 28, 2016 at US$0.47 per A ordinary share ("A Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share").

Dividends on A Shares will be paid, by default, in euro at the rate of €0.4218 per A Share. Holders of A Shares who have validly submitted pounds sterling currency elections by August 26, 2016 will be entitled to a dividend of 35.27p per A Share.

Dividends on B Shares will be paid, by default, in pounds sterling at the rate of 35.27p per B Share. Holders of B Shares who have validly submitted euro currency elections by August 26, 2016 will be entitled to a dividend of €0.4218 per B Share.

This dividend will be payable on September 19, 2016 to those members whose names were on the Register of Members on August 12, 2016.

[sarkasm] 26/8/2016 13:49

Dividends are now the only game in town
By Motley Fool | Fri, 26th August 2016 - 11:47
Share this

Today, savers are playing a game they can't win. With the average easy access savings account now paying just 0.5%, according to Moneyfacts.co.uk, they're onto a surefire loser. Inflation is low but not that low at 0.6%, which means that millions are seeing the value of their cash eroded in real terms.
Wicked game

Bonds aren't much better, with UK 10-year gilts yielding just 0.56%. The UK property market looks vulnerable to Brexit fallout, while former Chancellor George Osborne's parting tax shots at buy-to-let investors have wiped out many of its attractions.

Where cash, bonds and property are concerned, the game looks increasingly rigged. Dividend-paying stocks, by contrast, are a far more attractive bet. The odds are pretty good for a start, with the FTSE 100 currently yielding 3.71%, which is almost 15 times base rate and seven-and-a-half times the average savings account.
Check these top yields

You can get an even higher yield by targeting individual companies, with big names such as BP, HSBC Holdings, Legal & General Group and Royal Dutch Shell all yielding more than 6%. Obviously, this is riskier than leaving your money in the bank, with oil company yields particularly vulnerable as profits are squeezed. Which is why it's best to spread your risk between a number of companies, either by building your own portfolio of stocks or if that's too complicated through a low-cost FTSE tracker.

One of the big attractions of company dividends is that most businesses aim to increase them over time, as the business grows and cash flows increase. This means that with luck, you're locking into a rising income stream, so today's yields will look even more impressive in future years.

Say you buy a company that costs £1 per share today and pays a dividend of 5p. The yield is 5%. Let's say that next year the dividend is hiked to 6p and then 7p the following year. Effectively you will be getting a yield of 7% on your original money, plus any share price growth on top. By reinvesting those dividends you pick up more stock and get more dividends, accelerating the compounding effect.
Brexit bonus

It's important to remember that company dividends are never guaranteed, and are vulnerable to a cut if profits flounder. UK dividends are coming under pressure today, falling 3.3% year-on-year in the second quarter, according to the latest Henderson Global Dividend Index. Standard Chartered, Anglo American, Barclays and WM Morrison were among those making steep cuts.

Yet I'm not worried, because dividends still offer a far better return than you can get elsewhere, and will almost certainly continue to do so. Q2 dividends total $33.7bn, up 7.7% over the year, thanks to large special dividends from GlaxoSmithKline, Intercontinental Hotels and others. Better still, UK dividend investors have benefitted from Brexit. Many top UK companies pay their dividends in dollars and in some cases euros, and these are now worth more when converted back into sterling.

Generous yields, compounding benefits and the potential for rising yields make dividend investing about the most enjoyable game that any investor can play right now.

[waldron] 06/8/2016 07:29

2nd quarter 2016
Announcement date July 28, 2016
Ex-dividend date RDS A ADSs and RDS B ADSs August 10, 2016
Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B shares August 11, 2016
Record date August 12, 2016
Scrip reference share price announcement date August 18, 2016
Closing of scrip election and currency election (See Note) August 26, 2016
Pounds sterling and euro equivalents announcement date September 5, 2016
Payment date September 19, 2016

Note

A different scrip election date may apply to registered and non-registered ADS holders.

Registered ADS holders can contact The Bank of New York Mellon for the election deadline that applies. Non-registered ADS holders can contact their broker, financial intermediary, bank or financial institution for the election deadline that applies.

Both a different scrip and currency election date may apply to shareholders holding shares in a securities account with a bank or financial institution ultimately holding through Euroclear Nederland. This may also apply to other shareholders who do not hold their shares either directly on the Register of Members or in the corporate sponsored nominee arrangement. Shareholders can contact their broker, financial intermediary, bank or financial institution for the election deadline that applies.

The 2016 interim dividend timetable is also available on www.shell.com/dividend

[waldron] 28/7/2016 18:50

Royal Dutch Shell may have to slash its dividend - analysts
11:00 28 Jul 2016
Oil major held its interim dividend steady but may face pressure to cut it eventually
Shell petrol pumps
Shell's gas and downstream businesses fuelled earnings

Investors in Royal Dutch Shell PLC (LON:RDSB) should be steeling themselves for an eventual cut in their dividend payouts, according to analysts.

In half-year results on Thursday, the Anglo-Dutch company held its interim dividend steady, at 47 cents, despite underlying earnings for the quarter falling 72% to US$1bn.

Its gas and downstream businesses fuelled earnings, more than outweighing a US$2bn loss in the upstream division, which faced one-off charges of US$649mln.

But shares in the group fell 53.5p, or 2.5%, to 2051.5p.

Hargreaves Lansdown equity analyst Nicholas Hyett said: "Shell's commitment to the dividend is legendary, and half the Netherlands would keel over in apoplectic horror if Royal Dutch Shell ever cut the payout.

"However, the question is whether the company ultimately will have any choice in the matter.

"Even after dramatic cuts, Shell's spending plans still outstrip its likely cash flows, and with the dividend yield now over 7%, investors seem to be questioning whether the current rate of pay-out can continue."

Ayondo Markets chief trader Jordan Hiscott said: "Shell’s huge miss on second quarter profit estimates, by over US$1bn, is the largest I’ve seen in a while.

"The firm is clearly feeling the effects of the low oil price and hefty costs related to its arguably expensive takeover of BG Group, but what surprises me is that, with a loss of this magnitude, dividends are yet to be cut.

"With this in mind, it seems highly likely that we’ll see a cut to the full-year dividend later down the line."

The price of a barrel of Brent crude fell about 1.7% to US$42.75 while a barrel of West Texas Intermediate dropped 1.62% to US$41.25.

[grupo] 26/7/2016 08:00

BP posts lower profits and refining margins but maintains divi
07:35 26 Jul 2016
Oil & gas giant posted second-quarter profit of US$720mln
Oil rig in Asia
BP expects trading to stay tough

BP Plc (LON:BP.) reported lower profits due to falling oil and gas prices and the weakest refining margins for six years, but kept its dividend unchanged.

The oil giant posted second-quarter profit of US$720mln on an underlying replacement cost basis, versus US$532mln for the previous quarter and US$1.3bn for the second quarter of 2015.

BP said the figures took a hit from lower oil and gas prices and significantly lower refining margins, partly offset by lower cash costs throughout the group as well as lower exploration write-offs.

Broker Liberum said: "Adjusted Q2 results just about met expectations, in spite of lower oil and gas prices.

There do not appear to be any changes to recently announced guidance for 2016. We still believe that the top priority is to cover capex and the dividend with operating cash flow, without compromising growth options.

"We still assume a flat dividend of 40 cents, which offers a 6.9% dividend yield.

"We will review our forecasts and 433p target price and our recommendation stays at 'hold'."

The Brent oil marker price averaged US$46 a barrel in the second quarter, up from US$34 in the first quarter but still significantly lower than US$62 a year earlier.

While improved from the previous quarter, refining margins were the weakest for a second quarter since 2010.

Underlying quarterly operating cash flow - before pre-tax Gulf of Mexico payments - was US$5.5bn, which it said resulted from continuing reliable operation of assets.

A net post-tax non-operating charge in the quarter of US$2.8bn, including a pre-tax non-operating charge of US$5.2bn linked to Deepwater Horizon accident liabilities and other positive tax credits.

Including fair value accounting effects and inventory gains, it led to a reported quarterly loss of US$1.4bn.

BP announced an unchanged dividend for the quarter of 10 cents per ordinary share. BP has announced final estimated liabilities for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill of US$61.6bn.

Chief executive Bob Dudley said: "As we look forward we expect the external environment to remain challenging, but we have a strong pipeline of new projects which will add 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day of new production capacity by the end of next year.

"We are making significant improvements to the business that will stick at any oil price.

"We are now well down the path of transforming our business to compete, whatever the future holds.

"We now see a much stronger outlook for BP and are focused on growth, both for this decade and beyond."

[grupo guitarlumber] 09/7/2016 10:01

Brexit effect: vote provides respite for UK dividends

Oil rig worker
Turning off the income tap: the oil price may hold the key for future dividends.
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Ed Monk, investment editor

9 July 2016 • 7:55am

The fallout from the vote to leave the European Union has resulted in a welcome boost to the dividends of Britain’s largest companies.

Currency swings since the vote, which saw the pound fall against both the euro and dollar in a series of sharp slumps, mean that earnings at the country’s largest companies, most of which are made overseas, will be worth more in sterling. This helps shore up payments to shareholders at home.

But the effect is “one-off”;, a leading income fund manager said, warning that it “does nothing” to improve the underlying operations at companies or their ability to continue to pay out.

Check our five golden rules before you invest
'Telegraph 25': the definitive list of our favourite investment funds

If the pound remains at its current, lower level, investors can hope for “a year or two” of extra benefit, he said. Companies could either pass this on to shareholders in the form of higher payouts – or use it to bolster cash reserves, improving the ability to maintain payments in future.

In addition to the currency effect, a cut to corporation tax, pledged by Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne this week, would leave more cash on balance sheets to go toward dividends.

These boosts to dividends may well be needed, coming at a time when the wider picture of companies’ ability to sustain earnings and payouts is deteriorating.

By the end of 2015, “dividend cover” – the ratio by which company earnings exceed annual dividends – had fallen for the 350 largest UK companies to a level not seen since autumn 2009, when the UK was in recession, according to the Share Centre, a stockbroker.

It reported that for the FTSE 350, which comprises the FTSE 100 plus the FTSE 250 of medium-to-small companies, the ratio was just 1.0 at the end of 2015. That means earnings had no more than matched the most recent year of dividends.

Dividend cover for the FTSE 350 has been as high as 2.5 in the years since the financial crisis. It typically sits at around 1.5.

For the FTSE 100, this ratio had fallen to 0.9 by the end of 2015, meaning current dividends were not covered by earnings. That measure means one of two things must happen in the near future: earnings need to increase to sustain payouts, or payouts must fall.
ValuesDividend cover for UK companiesFTSE 100FTSE 250Q308Q109Q309Q110Q310Q111Q311Q112Q312Q113Q313Q114Q314Q115Q315-2-10123Q410χ9; FTSE 100: 2.39
Highcharts
Why Brexit may help (short term)

Movements in share prices since the vote for the UK to leave European Union on June 23 have been split, in large part due to the fall of sterling against other currencies.

Those companies with operations and earnings overseas have done well, jumping higher and helping the market overall to claw back the initial losses suffered after the result.

Many of these sit in the FTSE 100 Index of leading blue-chip companies. Domestically focused companies, more of which sit in the FTSE 250, have suffered far more. From a dividend point of view the currency effect is good news because most of the dividends in the UK are paid by large, international companies.

From a British economy perspective, however, it suggests investors fear tougher conditions ahead, whether these are related to Brexit or not.

Colin Morton, lead fund manager for the Franklin Rising Dividends fund, said: “There is a transactional benefit to UK investors because dividends will either be worth more in sterling; or overseas earnings will more easily cover dividends paid in the UK.

“It does nothing to help the operations of these companies but it could provide a year or two of extra grace for those companies struggling to cover their dividend – unless the currency moves reverse, of course.”
ValuesThe FTSE 100 since the Brexit resultFTSE 10024. Jun26. Jun28. Jun30. Jun2. Jul4. Jul580060006200640066006800
Highcharts
ValuesFTSE 250 since the Brexit resultFTSE 25024. Jun26. Jun28. Jun30. Jun2. Jul4. Jul14 50015 00015 50016 00016 50017 00017 500Monday, Jul 4, 2016● FTSE 250: 16 117
Highcharts

A weaker pound will benefit companies in different ways. Of the FTSE 100 constituents, 47 pay dividends in dollars, meaning these will be larger in sterling terms for UK investors. Where companies pay investors in pounds and pence but make sales overseas, they will be required to use less of their earnings to maintain their dividend.

Some will get a double boost. Mr Morton gave the example of luxury goods firm Burberry. Much of its costs originate in the UK and are shouldered in pounds and pence, as is its dividend, but it enjoys sales mainly booked in other currencies.
Dividends post Brexit

Beyond the impact of currency movements, however, investors clearly see worrying signs for certain sectors following the vote to leave.

Work by economic forecaster Markit suggested dividends from FTSE 350 companies would rise by a lower than forecast 1pc in 2016 and would then fall 2pc in 2017, once the post-Brexit sterling fall has been stripped out.

Such is the effect of the weak pound, however, that Markit said dividends would jump 3pc in nominal terms in 2016 and stay there in 2017 if sterling remains at its current level versus the dollar.

Markit said the vote to leave would hurt travel and leisure, the motor industry and banking the most, and forecasts dividend cuts of between 3pc and 6pc for these sectors. These are the areas most exposed to the spending of UK households, which is expected to contract as the fear, and perhaps reality, of recession begins to bite.

Brexit aside, many commentators point to outside risk to companies’ profitability, including a continued slowdown in China or a return to recession in the United States.
The pension pain

Another potentially pernicious effect on dividends from Brexit comes from falling gilt yields.

While some might have predicted a sell-off of UK government bonds or “gilts” following the referendum, which would have caused their prices to fall and yields – the income they pay relative to their market price – to rise, the opposite occurred.

In the general mayhem, investors sought safe harbour in gilts, pushing their prices up and their yields down to record lows. Gilts are the primary assets that company pension funds use to match their liabilities, so falling yields mean companies have to find money to plug a gap between their investments and the pensions they have promised to pay to employees past and present.

Pushing more cash into pension funds represents another drain on companies’ earnings and is another reason dividends could face cuts. The deficit of FTSE 350 pension schemes – the technical calculation of how much a fund falls short of being able to meet its pension promises – increased from £98bn on May 31 2016 to £119bn at the end of June, according to the Pensions Risk Survey from Mercer.

Le Roy van Zyl, a Mercer consultant, said: “Brexit may be positive for some schemes, for example, where the business outlook of the firm has improved significantly due to better export prospects. “For others, their ability to continue to underwrite pension deficits may have deteriorated significantly.”;
Future dividends: how dependent are they on the oil price?

The Share Centre figures reveal the extent of the crunch on the dividends in the oil and other “basic material” sectors.

Against an average of the FTSE 350 of 1.0, the dividend cover ratio for these sectors was – 0.2 and – 0.8, respectively, indicating that dividends were paid despite companies making losses.

The fact that the dividends were not covered at oil giants BP and Royal Dutch Shell is significant as the two companies account for more than a fifth of dividend income to UK investors.
Dividend cover ratioDividend cover by sector at the end of 2015-0.81.881.11.411.691.18-0.211.451.790.63Q415Basic MaterialsConsumer GoodsConsumer ServicesFinancialsHealth CareIndustrialsOil and GasTechnologyTelecommunicationsUtilities-1-0.500.511.522.5
Highcharts.com

They have maintained their payments despite collapsing profits, which have been driven by the oil price’s plunge to levels below $30. If oil giants’ earnings were to remain at their 2015 level for very long, those dividends would have to be cut, analysts say.

But the price has since recovered. This has given rise to the view that profits and dividend prospects could yet recover.

According to Mr Morton, a combination of recovering prices and savage cost-cutting has substantially improved the picture. “BP and Shell have been dramatically cutting their costs to try to match falls in the oil price,” he said.

“Their dividends had historically been set with the oil price at about $100, but they say they can maintain them with the price around $60, and it’s bounced to about $50 now.”

There was an even brighter case to argue, Mr Morton said, which is that sharp jumps in the oil price could be in store precisely because companies have cut costs and reduced future supply in the process.

[ariane] 13/6/2016 18:59

THE HAGUE, June 13, 2016 /PRNewswire/ --

The Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc ("RDS")(NYSE: RDS.A)(NYSE: RDS.B) today announced the pounds sterling and euro equivalent dividend payments in respect of the first quarter 2016 interim dividend, which was announced on May 4, 2016 at US$0.47 per A ordinary share ("A Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share").

Dividends on A Shares will be paid, by default, in euro at the rate of €0.4172 per A Share. Holders of A Shares who have validly submitted pounds sterling currency elections by June 6, 2016 will be entitled to a dividend of 32.98.p per A Share.

Dividends on B Shares will be paid, by default, in pounds sterling at the rate of 32.98p per B Share. Holders of B Shares who have validly submitted euro currency elections by June 6, 2016 will be entitled to a dividend of €0.4172 per B Share.

This dividend will be payable on June 27, 2016 to those members whose names were on the Register of Members on May 20, 2016.

Taxation - cash dividend

Cash dividends on A Shares will be subject to the deduction of Dutch dividend withholding tax at the rate of 15%, which may be reduced in certain circumstances. Based on a policy statement issued by the Dutch Ministry of Finance on April 29, 2016, and depending on their particular circumstances, non-Dutch individual shareholders may be entitled to a full or partial refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax.

Furthermore, in April 2016, there were changes to the UK taxation of dividends. The dividend tax credit has been abolished, and a new tax free dividend allowance of £5,000 introduced. Dividend income in excess of the allowance will be taxable at the following rates: 7.5% within the basic rate band; 32.5% within the higher rate band; and 38.1% on dividend income taxable at the additional rate.

If you are uncertain as to the tax treatment of any dividends you should consult your own tax advisor.

[the grumpy old men] 08/5/2016 16:41

SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT 10/05/2016 12/05/2016 Ordinaire 0.65€

[sarkasm] 08/5/2016 14:40

Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B shares May 19, 2016

[the grumpy old men] 04/5/2016 10:07

Dividend timetable for the first quarter 2016 interim dividend

Announcement
date May 4,
2016

Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B ADS May 18, 2016

Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B shares May 19, 2016

Record
date
May 20, 2016

Scrip reference share price announcement date May 26, 2016

Closing of scrip election and currency election (See Note) June 6, 2016

Pounds sterling and euro equivalents announcement date June 13, 2016

Payment
date
June 27, 2016

[waldron] 04/5/2016 07:54

Royal Dutch Shell RDS Q1 2016 Dividend Announcement
04/05/2016 6:00am
UK Regulatory (RNS & others)


TIDMRDSA TIDMRDSB

ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC FIRST QUARTER 2016 INTERIM DIVIDEND

The Hague, May 4, 2016 - The Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc ("RDS") today
announced an interim dividend in respect of the first quarter of 2016 of
US$0.47 per A ordinary share ("A Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share"),
equal to the US dollar dividend for the same quarter last year.

RDS provides eligible shareholders with a choice to receive dividends in cash
or in shares via a Scrip Dividend Programme ("the Programme"). For further
details please see below.

Details relating to the first quarter 2016 interim dividend

It is expected that cash dividends on the B Shares will be paid via the
Dividend Access Mechanism from UK-sourced income of the Shell Group.

Per ordinary share Q1 2016

RDS A Shares (US$) 0.47

RDS B Shares (US$) 0.47

Cash dividends on A Shares will be paid, by default, in euro, although holders
of A Shares will be able to elect to receive dividends in pounds sterling.

Cash dividends on B Shares will be paid, by default, in pounds sterling,
although holders of B Shares will be able to elect to receive dividends in
euro.

The pounds sterling and euro equivalent dividend payments will be announced on
June 13, 2016.

Per ADS Q1 2016

RDS A ADSs (US$) 0.94

RDS B ADSs (US$) 0.94

Cash dividends on American Depository Shares ("ADSs") will be paid, by default,
in US dollars.

ADS stands for an American Depositary Share. ADR stands for an American
Depositary Receipt. An ADR is a certificate that evidences ADSs. ADSs are
listed on the NYSE under the symbols RDS.A and RDS.B. Each ADS represents two
ordinary shares, two A Shares in the case of RDS.A or two B Shares in the case
of RDS.B. In many cases the terms ADR and ADS are used interchangeably.



Scrip Dividend Programme

RDS provides shareholders with a choice to receive dividends in cash or in
shares via the Programme.

Under the Programme shareholders can increase their shareholding in RDS by
choosing to receive new shares instead of cash dividends, if approved by the
Board. Only new A Shares will be issued under the Programme, including to
shareholders who currently hold B Shares.

In some countries, joining the Programme may currently offer a tax advantage
compared with receiving cash dividends. In particular, dividends paid out as
shares by the Company will not be subject to Dutch dividend withholding tax
(currently 15 per cent), unlike cash dividends paid on A shares, and they will
not generally be taxed on receipt by a UK shareholder or a Dutch shareholder.

Shareholders who elect to join the Programme will increase the number of shares
held in RDS without having to buy existing shares in the market, thereby
avoiding associated dealing costs.

Shareholders who do not join the Programme will continue to receive in cash any
dividends approved by the Board.

Shareholders who held only B Shares and joined the Programme are reminded they
will need to make a Scrip Dividend Election in respect of their new A Shares if
they wish to join the Programme in respect of such new shares. However, this
is only necessary if the shareholder has not previously made a Scrip Dividend
Election in respect of any new A Shares issued.

For further information on the Programme, including how to join if you are
eligible, please refer to the appropriate publication available on
www.shell.com/scrip.

Dividend timetable for the first quarter 2016 interim dividend

Announcement
date May 4,
2016

Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B ADS May 18, 2016

Ex-dividend date RDS A and RDS B shares May 19, 2016

Record
date
May 20, 2016

Scrip reference share price announcement date May 26, 2016

Closing of scrip election and currency election (See Note) June 6, 2016

Pounds sterling and euro equivalents announcement date June 13, 2016

Payment
date
June 27, 2016



Note

Both a different scrip and currency election date may apply to shareholders
holding shares in a securities account with a bank or financial institution
ultimately holding through Euroclear Nederland. This may also apply to other
shareholders who do not hold their shares either directly on the Register of
Members or in the corporate sponsored nominee arrangement. Shareholders can
contact their broker, financial intermediary, bank or financial institution for
the election deadline that applies. A different scrip election date may apply
to registered and non-registered ADS holders. Registered ADS holders can
contact The Bank of New York Mellon for the election deadline that applies.
Non-registered ADS holders can contact their broker, financial intermediary,
bank or financial institution for the election deadline that applies.

Taxation - cash dividends

Cash dividends on A Shares will be subject to the deduction of Dutch dividend
withholding tax at the rate of 15%, which may be reduced in certain
circumstances.

In April 2016, there were changes to the UK taxation of dividends. The dividend
tax credit has been abolished, and a new tax free dividend allowance of GBP5,000
introduced. Dividend income in excess of the allowance will be taxable at the
following rates: 7.5% within the basic rate band; 32.5% within the higher rate
band; and 38.1% on dividend income taxable at the additional rate.

If you are uncertain as to the tax treatment of any dividends you should
consult your own tax advisor.

Royal Dutch Shell plc

Contacts:

- Investor Relations: Europe + 31 (0) 70 377 4540; North America +1 832 337
2034

- Media: International [phone]; Americas [phone]

[the grumpy old men] 02/5/2016 11:30

Why oil majors still pay lush dividends as profits plunge

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To the giant energy companies, their generous dividends remain sacrosanct, even as low oil prices punish their bottom lines. And although many Wall Street savants predict the four major players eventually will be forced to lop dividends, company managers are adamant that won't happen.

As a survival measure, scores of smaller energy outfits have axed their payouts during the oil bust. Many of these companies fell into bankruptcy or other restructurings. But the quartet of oil majors possesses the market reach and financial heft to slog through their industry's troubles, at least for the time being. So, they keep defiantly paying the rich dividends.

Exxon Mobil (XOM), which announced Friday that profits for this year's first quarter sank 63 percent, nevertheless hiked its quarterly payout 3 percent, to 75 cents per share. That marked Exxon's 34th straight year of dividend hikes. And the dividend announcement came on the heels of Standard & Poor's stripping Exxon of its pristine AAA credit rating earlier last week.

One reason S&P cited for the downgrade was Exxon's "large dividend payments." In 2015, it had $16.2 billion in net income, which was almost half of 2014's showing. In spite of the earnings slide, by S&P's count, Exxon last year shelled out some $12 billion in dividend payments.

Also Friday, Chevron (CVX) posted a $725 million loss, its second consecutive quarter in the red in 13 years. It kept the dividend level steady, though.

Even BP (BP), suffering from massive ongoing expenditures to atone for its catastrophic 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, is maintaining its nice quarterly dividend at 60 cents per share. The British firm last week reported a 79 percent drop in first-quarter earnings.

Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A), due to report its performance on Wednesday, will see earnings per share tumble by 68 percent, compared to 2015's first quarter, according to analysts' estimates. Last year, the Anglo-Dutch company's chief executive, Ben van Beurden, guaranteed the dividend will remain inviolate through 2016.

The oil majors provide investors with handsome yields (that's the dividend divided by the stock price): 3.4 percent for Exxon, 4.1 percent for Chevron, 7.2 percent for BP and 6 percent for Shell. Those compare favorably to the 1.9 percent yield for the broader market. By S&P's reckoning, energy companies made up 60 percent of U.S. corporate dividends, by dollar volume, in 2016's first quarter.

"The dividend is a core reason to invest in the oil majors," said Joe D'Angelo, a partner in Carl Marks, an investment firm. "Cut it and you risk a trade-off" of the stock. Although the majors' stocks are up a bit this year, they're way down from two years ago. Think how much worse they would be without the attraction of the dividend.

Depressed oil prices, which have caused so much distress in the energy business, show little sign of returning to comfortable levels. The price was around $110 per barrel in 2013 and then sank to $26 last year, amid a vast expansion of global output that has led to an enormous glut.

Oil's price has edged up to $46 per barrel lately, but further advances will be tough. While production pullbacks in North America and elsewhere have eased the oversupply somewhat, continued pell-mell pumping in the Middle East is a formidable obstacle to price improvement. Shell's van Beurden has said his company's break-even price is $50 per barrel.

Trouble is, even if the oil price does climb to $60, Goldman Sach's (GS) head of commodities research, Jeff Currie, argued that the Big Four won't be able to keep paying so lavishly. The commitment to high dividends was struck during better days for the energy sector, he said.

The majors' devotion to outsized dividends rests on their breadth of activities. They have a hand in all aspects of the energy business, from exploration and production to gasoline refining and chemical manufacturing. While the money they make from finding and extracting petroleum has dwindled, refining it benefits from the lower costs. Ditto chemicals.

The four biggest oil companies' geographic span is daunting. Exxon, which often tops the list of the world's most valuable companies -- not counting huge state-owned entities like China's -- has operations on every continent except Antarctica.

The majors' smaller rivals don't enjoy such strength and diversification. ConocoPhillips (COP), for instance, slashed its dividend by two-thirds in February, trying to stem losses. CEO Ryan Lance termed the decision "gut-wrenching." In 2012, Conoco spun off its refining unit. Diamond Offshore Drilling (DO), which focuses on production, eliminated its dividend this winter, as the firm turned unprofitable.

Rather than touch payouts, the four largest publicly traded oil companies have all whittled down their stocks buybacks, trimmed costs and shrunk capital spending, such as searches for new oil fields. Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst for S&P Dow Jones Indices, noted that buybacks and spending are more flexible than dividends, whose level investors closely follow. Reducing the payouts, he said, "is admitting to the world: 'We have a problem.'"

The largest firms have a greater ability to tap capital markets than smaller competitors do. And they have enormous amounts of cash, which they can deploy to pay investors. "Those huge cash piles mean they don't have to depend on cash flow" to fund dividends, Carl Marks' D'Angelo said.

The oil majors may yet disappoint investors. For the moment, however, they smugly believe they won't.

[la forge] 27/3/2016 08:38

Why these are Britain's best dividend shares

Sausages
Cranswick, Britain’s largest sausage maker, is a reliable dividend payer

Kyle Caldwell

27 March 2016 • 8:00am

For investors seeking income it has become a much tougher task to build a portfolio of good value and reliable dividend shares.

Over the past year, 14 shares in the FTSE 100 index have taken an axe to their dividends. Some, such as Tesco and Severn Trent, have been consistent payers over the years.

But, as experienced investors can testify, when a company faces headwinds, the dividend is often sacrificed.

The outlook for dividends is predicted to get even worse, with experts arguing that companies are paying out too much of their earnings in dividends.

According to Personal Assets, a respected investment trust, a return to normal payout levels would see the 3.9pc yield on the FTSE All Share fall by more than a third.

At such times a prudent strategy is to look towards the dividend kings: those with a solid track record of growing payments.

Research for Telegraph Money by SharePad, a portfolio analysis tool, filtered the UK stock market for companies that have grown dividends every year for at least two decades.

It looked at every share in the FTSE All Share, excluding investment trusts. In applying the screen some shares, such as Royal Dutch Shell which has not cut its dividends since 1945, do not feature. This is because there has been at least one year when the dividend was maintained rather than increased.

A total of 10 shares qualified as dividend kings: Vodafone, the telecoms firm; Cranswick, Britain’s largest sausage maker; SSE, the energy firm; RPC, a plastics specialist; Fuller Smith & Turner, the brewer and pub group; Halma, a maker of health and safety devices, Bloomsbury, the publisher, and PZ Cussons, maker of household goods.

The remaining two are outsourcing firms: Capita and Mitie Group.

Phil Oakley, analyst at SharePad, said: “A long track record of dividend growth can be seen as a hallmark of a high quality and resilient business. It shows a company has been able to prosper in good times and bad and might be able to keep on doing so.

“But investors also need to be wary. Sometimes management can become slaves to a dividend policy and pay dividends which aren’t sustainable. Investors need to keep an eye on the levels of dividend cover and whether a company might be borrowing to pay its dividend due to a lack of cash flow.”

This “cover” is calculated by comparing profits and dividends.

As a rule of thumb, a low dividend cover score, around one or lower, suggests dividends are vulnerable, as the company is using most, if not all, of its profits to fund the dividend. A figure of two or more is comfortable.

Vodafone’s strong dividend track record, for example, looks under threat with a score of 0.5. Every other share on the list looks more secure, although SSE is close to the danger zone on 1.2. The strongest cover was Fuller at 3.2 and Cranswick at 2.8.

Source: SharePad. Please note data used is the forecast dividend yield, based on analysts' expectations in one year's time.
Look outside the UK for income

Given that Britain is considered to have a strong dividend culture it is surprising that only a small number of companies achieved the feat of increasing their dividend each year since 1996.

But globally there are plenty of other shares with striking dividend records.

The US seems to be better at producing companies that can grow their dividends without interruption for decades at a time.

Research by Hargreaves Lansdown, the broker, picked out five shares with exceptional records.

The first is Coca-Cola, which has increased divis for 53 years.Impressively it has grown its divi 10pc a year on average.

The next is PepsiCo, the second most valuable drinks company in the world, behind Coca-Cola. It has upped payments for 43 years.

Procter and Gamble, whose brands include Gillette, Oral-B, Pampers, Ariel, Olay and Head & Shoulders, has 59 years of dividend increases.

Colgate-Palmolive, the global leader in toothpaste, has upped divis for 52 years on the spin, while Johnson & Johnson. the world’s leading health care company, has notched up 53 years of dividend increases.

Dividend kings can also be found in Europe. Food giant Nestlé is the standout example, the firm has not cut its dividend since 1959. L'Oréal, the cosmetics company, and Roche, the drug firm, have both increased their dividends every year for at least the past quarter of a century.

But in Asia and the emerging markets they are tougher to find, and much less common. More of a dividend culture is starting to emerge, but historically companies have not viewed rewarding shareholders with regular income payments as a priority.
The smart trackers that screen for dividends

There are a small number of funds that are screen for companies with good dividend records, “smart beta” in industry jargon.

The SPDR S&P UK Dividend Aristocrats ETF tracks the fortunes of 30 shares.

To qualify each share has to have either raised or held their dividend over the past decade.

Alexis Marinof, of SPDR, highlighted WPP, the advertising giant, Capita and Mitie Group as having the best track record for upping dividends over the last 20 years.

“During this period these stocks returned over 13pc annualised each, while the FTSE 100 returned only 6pc annualised,” Mr Marinof said.

There are also US and European versions of the Dividend Aristocrats ETF.
Investment trust dividend heroes

For income investors who prefer to outsource the decisions to an active fund manager, then investment trusts should be considered.

This fund type boasts better records of increasing payments each year than unit trusts because they can hold some of their income in reserve each year.

This gives them greater control over how they distribute the income received and is why most were able to weather the storm in the financial crisis. No unit trust or OEIC has been able to grow the dividend each year over the past decade.

The six investment trusts with the longest track records are; City of London (49 years of dividend increases), Bankers (49), Alliance Trust (48), Caledonia Investments (48), F&C Global Smaller Companies (45) and Foreign & Colonial Investment Trust (45).