Member Info for LordAdam

Final results are slated for Thursday 13th February ... does anyone have any guesses as to what will happen as regards the dividend?

Current figure plus 3% takes us to 60.6577p per quarter ... that seems to be a reasonable estimate to me ... what do other folk think?

I too didn't get the dividend on the RI shares ... I'm using iWeb who are usually pretty much on the ball with this sort of thing.

So, looking at the statements/logs in detail, the account was funded for the RI well in advance of the required date, the money was actually logged as being taken from the balance on 7th June, the ex-div date was the 6th June ... from that I read that I won't be getting the dividend on the new shares, only the holding that I had that generated the new shares.

Must say, the last 20-25 years of investing experience as regards RIs (which used to be far more common than they are now) has taught me that this is typical of how the things are usually arranged! (Oh what a jaded old cynic I am!)

Indeed, diligent burrowing in the Prospectus reveals this paragraph ... :( ...

"The New Shares will, when issued and fully paid, rank equally in all respects with the Existing

Shares, including the right to receive all dividends and other distributions made, paid or

declared after the date of issue of the New Shares, save for the right to receive the final

dividend of 39.12 pence per Share proposed to be paid in respect of the year ended 31 March 2024

and subject to approval by the Shareholders at the 2024 annual general meeting of the

Company (“2024 AGM”), which shall only be paid in respect of the Existing Shares (“FY24

Final Dividend”)."

The date of issue of the new shares appears to be 12 June 2024.

My general plan was to sell after the 27th (exdiv date) at a price of about 1850 if I could get it sometime over the following months. If it looks to be a generally rising market then I would probably split the holding and sell it in two tranches.

As I bought them a long time back at an average price of 1482 I don't need to be too greedy in trying to find the peak. (with dividends an annual rate of return of 8.17% ... not including the coming div and anything I can get over the present 1700-1800 price)

In away I'll be sad to see them go, but they just don't match my investment profile anymore :(

Mike

I'm a long, long, term dividend investor ... and reviewing my stuff today ... the 60p rebase for 23/24 (current year) caught my eye.

As the current dividend is 96.7p for the year, that seems to me to be an effective cut of 38% ... it's almost as though every time the dividend reaches 95p the company is cutting it ... last time it was to 80p, this time it's to 60p!

I suppose the obvious question is, first have I read that right?

And second one, which only I can answer I suppose, given the rebase to 80p that happened in 2020 is it time for me to move on?

Mike

Thanks for the insight ...

I certainly wouldn't be happy if they were now issuing a tranche of shares at the current market price, particularly if they didn't have a blazingly good use for the capital! I suppose I was guilty of seeing the scrip only from a small investor's point of view.

Of course the size of the uptake of a scrip is an indicator of what investors think of the prevailing price. From what I can see of the 6-month figures the latest uptake was 1.9m shares, whereas the year before was 300,000 ... nough said.

Thanks,

Mike

I note that the dividend declaration today, withdraws the scrip dividend option.

How do folk read that?

My take is that a scrip increases the total number of shares, saves actual cash for the company, but would reduce the NAV because of the increased divisor. I don't see what's not to like about the scrip from the company's point of view.

Mike

freedom ... i see that my friendly attempt at banter regarding your stuck caps lock key was not seen as such but rather some kind of attack on you personally, which indeed, it was not. i'm sure that there are many folk here who would be happy to send you an old usb keyboard if you'll let us know where to send it.

in the meantime can i point out that the automated forum monitoring software both looks for and logs the excessive use of capitals as a form of shouting, and as such thinks of it as a form of abuse to decent upstanding folk ... consequently your present keyboard problems necessatate us other folk to using all lower case to bring the caps/lower-case ration back to normal.

This was a conversation from a friend:

Friend: HEY THERE WALT! HOW'S IT GOING???

Me: Dude... caps lock...

Firne: WHOAAAH THANKS!!! NOW I DON'T HAVE TO KEEP HOLDING THE SHIFT KEY WHEN I TYPE!!!

I'm suspicious ... it's unusual for a company to alter its articles of association, one of the principle documents first created when a company is formed and that governs how it conducts itself as regards governance etc. The RNS today gives notice that they've posted articles to the NSM, but as yet they aren't there.

I wonder what's going on here, nothing untoward I hope ...

Swim Fan ... sorry to break the bad news but in the recent RNS we have this ...

"As the Group's proposed final dividend for 2019 of 4.3 pence per share, which was due to be paid on 3 July 2020, requires approval at the AGM, the postponement of the AGM means the approval of this final dividend to shareholders will be postponed accordingly.

Whilst Balfour Beatty benefits from a strong financial position, in light of the market uncertainty arising from COVID-19, the Board will keep the appropriateness of paying the final dividend under review until the rescheduled AGM, with a final decision dependant on the prevailing circumstances at the time."

Most (if not all) other builders have suspended/cancelled their dividends, it may well be that Balfour will go the same way.

Nice to see that the board are continuing to draw their rather large salaries ... meanwhile ... me, who relies on dividends has taken a 100% cut in income for the whole year ... and probably a reduced income thereafter as the dividend is "rebased".

Interesting to see isn't it how every builder regardless of cash position is cancelling the dividend at the same time ... kind of smells doesn't it.

Quite the case of "I'm all right Jack, pull up the ladder".

Nice to see that the board have taken a temporary 20% cut in their rather large salaries until site work is able to recommence ... meanwhile ... me, who relies on dividends has taken a 100% cut in income for the whole year ... and a reduced income thereafter as the dividend is "rebased".

Interesting to see isn't it how every builder regardless of cash position is cancelling the dividend at the same time ... kind of smells doesn't it.

Quite the case of "I'm all right Jack, pull up the ladder".

The setting of the dividend is for the board to decide/recommend and the shareholders to agree (AGM) ... the FCA (and anybody else) can say what they like -- they can only exert pressure, not dictate.

However, if the government were to introduce a change to the Companies Act that would be different.

There's no financial reason for SLA to pull its dividend.

No, the dividend that was going to be paid to those Vistry holders on the register the day before we got onto it, has been postponed (see VTY RNS of 25 March). They won't be getting that. Which means when it is paid, those of us who obtained Vistry shares as part of the deal will get a look in.

Maybe I'm cynical, maybe naive ... but I think the story plays out something like this ...

Big crisis, lots of publicity, doom & despair everywhere, everyone's expecting cuts, austerity, hard times uncertainty ... what a perfect opportunity to 'rationalise' the dividend, cut it back, trim it ... we'll be retaining capital to bolster the coffers against the upcoming tide of uncertainty.

Then later ... what a perfect opportunity to buy back the companies stock ... (aside: let's use the money that we were going to pay to those saps, the shareholders, to do something that benefits us) ... just tell them that you can't get a rate of return like we can by buying back our own shares, they'll swallow that ... oh look the EPS is rising, well don't we look like good'uns ... rising EPS ... and would you know it, our bonuses are linked to EPS ... well I never.

Let's do it ... oh best run it past the legal boys ... umm ... problem ... it's so dodgy that the law forbids it, yep, Companies Act 2006 says we can't do it ... but, wait, there's a get around .. all we have to do is get the saps to pass a motion at the AGM saying they don't care ... oh, and good'ol legal bods they put it in the AGM the last time around, and every time they fall for it -- big rubbing of hands, what do you know, we can do it afterall.

Plan spending your bonus folks, it's going to be a good year .... for us.

I know many will have seen the RNS today cancelling the second interim dividend of 41p that would have been paid on 29th May to holders on the register on 27/12/19. This cancelling of a dividend which has already passed the exDiv date seems to be a fashion with builders at the moment ... and is much to be discouraged.

But leaving that aside ... there's a real question here. When GFRD and VTY did their thing, the old VTY shareholders kept the final dividend all to themselves by fudging the exDiv date to before the merger was complete and pushed the GFRD holders out in the cold, even though the new VTY shares ranked pari passu with the old ones ie were identical.

Now when VTY do get around to issuing a dividend again ... seems to me they will have to do it for all of us, regardless of the GFRD/VTY thing. In that sense, this could be an advantage to a GFRD investor. But only if the board can't come up with some crazy scheme of issuing a dividend or capital return to people on the register at a time in the past.

Does anyone know if and how they could do that ... ?

Don't think that the government will step in because of the global importance of RR. Sadly it won't. There's a long line of globally important companies that have folded or passed into 'global' ownership before the government stepped in.

It won't step in because of the national importance of RR ... which of course is what it should ...

There's no shortage of competitors for RR who would be only too glad to see it go to zero.

Normally this share is as quiet as this board ... very sedate and very calm ... even in this present market its been relatively well behaved ... until today ...

6-7% swings ... What's behind it folks?

Pianista, a couple of possible explanations ... LSE have been having a lot of trouble with their site recently and trade lists haven't been kept up to date ... and secondly, although I don't think it applies in this case, the market makers can delay posting the trade information to the trade list for various periods of time dependant on the size of the trade.

I reject your implied criticism ... I'm very well versed in the arguments in favour of buybacks, its a debate I've held many times over the years, and I still continue to hold the views that I do. My judgement is that I'd rather have the certainty of an income distribution which I can bank, invest or spend as I see fit as opposed to a manipulated share price which may or may not provide some capital gain at some point in the future or may not as the case may turn to be.