An analysis of the Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE)-listed firms on dividends payout in the first half shows that most of them have maintained what they paid last year, with some marginally increasing the dividends.

The development, according to market watchers, mirrors the country’s subdued economic performance characterised by high inflation and interest rates and the continued effect of the 25 percent devaluation of the kwacha.

Trading in progress at Malawi Stock Exchange

Nico Asset Managers Limited Monthly Economic Review Report for September 2022 shows that only seven counters marginally increased dividend payouts while five did not pay any.

According to the data, stocks in the banking sector were the highest paying in terms of dividends per share while those in the telecommunications, real estate and tourism sectors paid little or nothing to their investors.

Minority Shareholders Association of Malawi secretary general Frank Harawa in an interview on Tuesday admitted that companies have had a tough time to remain afloat, but blamed some for simply not honouring dividend payouts.

He said: “We are in the business of making money and it is sad that for some time, most companies have not improved on dividend payouts.

“We have tried to diversify our investments, but the fact of the matter is that few companies are really doing well in terms of paying reasonable dividends.”

Market analyst Bond Mtembezeka said in an interview on Tuesday companies exercise caution when making a number of decisions, including dividends payouts.

He said: “Every company has a dividend policy which outlines how dividends will be paid.

“One reason dividends paid out may not have been significant could be because companies are cautious considering the prevailing economic conditions.

Data shows that National Bank of Malawi plc was the highest paying counter at K49.26 per share in the half- year ended June 2022, a jump from K27.84 per share during a similar period last year.

The data, however, shows that TNM plc and Airtel Malawi plc did not pay any dividends. 

Similarly, Sunbird Tourism plc, Blantyre Hotels plc and Mpico plc did not pay any dividends.

MSE has 16 counters with 48 billion shares on issue and a market capitalisation of about K3 trillion.

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