Aradel to pay N34.8bn interim dividend less than a month after listing

Aradel Holdings Plc will pay an interim dividend of N8 per share, representing a dividend payout of N34.8 billion for the nine months (9M) to September 30, 2024.

The dividends will be paid to shareholders whose names appear on the shareholders register as of November 20, 2024.

The move by Aradel to pay dividend comes two weeks after the group listed on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX).

The proposed interim dividend for 9M 2024 is 433 percent higher than the N6.5 billion interim dividend distributed by the group in 2023.

On October 14, Aradel Holdings Plc was listed by introduction on the NGX at a share price of N702.69, however, the stock’s share price has declined by 28.8 percent since then. It is currently trading at a share price of N550.1.

In 9M 2024, Aradel Holdings posted a net profit of N110.6 billion, marking a 477 percent year-on-year growth from the N19.2 billion recorded in the corresponding period in 2023. Hence, the dividend distributed for the period represents a dividend payout ratio of 31 percent.

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In FY 2023, Aradel paid a total dividend of N43.4 billion, representing an interim dividend of N30 per share and a final dividend of N170 per share for its 217.2 million ordinary shares of N10 each.

The other upstream oil companies listed on the NGX, Seplat Energy and Oando Plc have also been quite active this year.

The only company to do so in Nigeria, Seplat pays an interim dividend every quarter of the year. This amount was formerly fixed at 3 US Cents, however, for Q3 2024, the company is proposing an interim dividend of 3.6 US Cents.

Year-to-date, Seplat has appreciated by 147 percent, with its share price hitting N5,700 per share, by far the NGX’s most expensive share.

Oando Plc, currently the second-highest gainer on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) this year, has been suspended from trading on the exchange following non-compliance with regulatory deadlines for filing audited financial statements. The company has not yet submitted its audited results for the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years.