MOSCOW (MRC) -- The Executive Board of Evonik Industries AG resolved today - based on the provisional figures for 2015 - that it aims for a dividend for the last fiscal year in the amount of EUR1.15 per share, as per compny's press release.
That would be an increase of 15 percent from the previous year's dividend of EUR1.00 per share. Contingent upon the approval of the Supervisory Board, a corresponding dividend proposal would be made to the Annual Shareholders' Meeting on May 18, 2016.
Following an initial overview of past fiscal year 2015, the Executive Board has come to the conclusion that the targets set for 2015 were clearly achieved. The Executive Board anticipates an adjusted EBITDA of around EUR2.4 billion for 2015, with sales of around EUR13.5 billion. Klaus Engel, Chairman of the Executive Board: "It is already clear that we ended the past fiscal year successfully. We would like our shareholders to participate in that. Our intention of raising the dividend is also coupled with confidence that we can shape the new fiscal year successfully."
The corresponding increase in the payout continues Evonik Industries AG's attractive dividend policy, which aims for a payout ratio of around 40 percent of adjusted net income and dividend continuity. Moreover, the high operating cash flow in the past fiscal year allows a considerable increase in the dividend without impairing the Group's ambitious growth targets. Evonik has increased the dividend by an average of 9 percent per year over the past six years, positioning it among the most attractive dividend-paying shares.
Evonik will be publishing its results for fiscal year 2015 and the joint dividend proposal of the Executive Board and Supervisory Board on March 3, 2016.
As MRC informed earlier, Evonik Industries invested over EUR400 mln in its plants in Germany in 2015. Last year, Evonik once again demonstrated its considerable power to create at its German sites. Thus, according to a recent projection, the company invested more than EUR 400 million in its domestic production plants. The lion’s share of the funds (around two-thirds) was divided among Evonik’s five-largest sites in Germany: Marl (hundreds of millions of euros), Hanau, Essen, Darmstadt, and Wesseling (tens of millions of euros at each site).
Evonik, the creative industrial group from Germany, is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. Its activities focus on the key megatrends health, nutrition, resource efficiency and globalization. Evonik benefits specifically from its innovative prowess and integrated technology platforms. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world.
MRC