Globe Telecom increases dividend payout to P8.6B

MANILA, Philippines—Ayala-led Globe Telecom increased its cash dividend payout to shareholders this year despite spending more money for the modernization of its nationwide cellular phone network.

In a statement, Globe said its board of directors recently approved the declaration of the second semi-annual cash dividend of P32.50 a common share payable on September 18 to shareholders on record as of August 28.

This involved the payment of P8.6 billion, representing about 86 percent of the company’s 2011 core net income, higher than the P8.2 billion in dividends the company declared in 2011 or 84 percent of prior year’s net income.

Globe earlier amended its dividend policy to base the payout on core net income instead of reported net income.

Core net income excludes all foreign exchange and mark-to-market charges, as well as non-recurring items such as accelerated depreciation charges arising from its IT transformation and network modernization programs. The policy change ensures that dividends and yields remain competitive.

“We at Globe take pride in the company’s consistent performance over the years and in increasing shareholder value,” Globe president Ernest Cu said. “It has always been our aim to provide superior returns to our shareholders and these cash dividends show our commitment to achieving this vision.”

Last year, Globe’s core net income rose 11 percent to P10 billion from P9.1 billion the year before. The company’s reported net income, however, was lower at P9.8 billion.

Citing data from Thomson Reuters StarMine, Globe said it was able to offer the highest dividend yield of 8.3 percent among 39 publicly listed local companies.

Globe recently reported that it posted a net income of P5 billion for the January-to-June period this year, down 10 percent year on year. Excluding foreign exchange and mark-to-market gains and losses as well as nonrecurring items, however, core net income was up 2 percent to P5.7 billion from P5.6 billion, Globe said.

Total service revenues reached P40.8 billion, up 6 percent from the same period last year. The company ended the first semester with 31.7 million subscribers, also up 12 percent year on year.