Anil Agarwal-led Hindustan Zinc has declared an interim dividend of Rs 7 per equity share to its eligible shareholders at a board meeting held on Saturday. The dividend announcement will result in an overall payout of Rs 2,957.72 crore for the company. The record date for the purpose of payment of the interim dividend has been fixed on July 15, 2023.
This is the first dividend payout by the Vedanta subsidiary in fiscal FY2024. This is also the lowest interim dividend announcement that the company has made in the last three years.
Hindustan Zinc, in a regulatory filing, said: “In continuation to our letter dated July 05, 2023 and pursuant to Regulation 30 of Listing Regulations, we wish to inform you that the Board of Directors of the Company through a resolution passed by circulation on Saturday, July 08, 2023 have approved Interim Dividend of Rs. 7 per equity share i.e. 350% on the face value of Rs. 2/- per share for the Financial Year 2023-24 amounting to Rs. 2957.72 crores."
It added: "The record date for the purpose of payment of interim dividend, as already communicated is July 15, 2023. The interim dividend will be paid within stipulated timelines as prescribed under law."
Hindustan Zinc declared a dividend of a total of Rs 75.5 in the financial year 2023. In Q4FY23, the company announced a dividend of Rs 26, the highest in the corresponding financial year.
On July 3, the company declared having recorded the highest-ever mined metal production in the first quarter at 257 kilotonnes, up 2 per cent year-on-year (YoY) on account of higher ore production.
Hindustan Zinc's recent dividend announcement comes right before some debt repayment timelines for Vedanta Resources. Vedanta has coupon repayments worth $152.2 million, which is about Rs 1,250 crore, due between July 21 and September 11.
At present, Hindustan Zinc has cash and cash equivalents worth Rs 10,061 crore and total borrowings to the tune of Rs 11,841 crore.
In May, Agarwal said that the parent company, Vedanta Resources will become a zero-debt company over the next few years.
The current round of dividend announcements will result in a windfall of Rs 1,920 crore for Vedanta Ltd., which holds a 64.92 per cent stake in Hindustan Zinc.
In FY23, Hindustan Zinc saw a 15.72 per cent revenue growth year-on-year (YoY) with its operational revenues for FY23 being Rs 35,477 crore against Rs 30,656 crore in FY22. However, the EBITDA margin reduced from 56.89 per cent in FY22 to 53.23 per cent in FY23. Net Profit in FY23 improved marginally to Rs. 10,511 crore from Rs. 9,629 crore in FY22.
Also Watch: Top camera phones under Rs 20,000 in India: Vivo T2 5G, Galaxy M34 5G, Moto G73, and more
Also read: Vedanta brings semiconductor, display glass businesses under its holding firm
Also read: Vedanta Group appoints YJ Chen as CEO of its display business