Vedanta Board To Discuss Interim Dividend, Announcement Expected On May 22

Vedanta Limited, one of the world's leading diversified natural resources companies, has recently garnered significant attention from investors as rumors circulate about a potential dividend declaration. The mining giant is expected to make an official announcement on May 22 regarding the payout, which has sparked interest and intrigue among shareholders and market participants.

The board meeting of Vedanta Ltd, the mining conglomerate led by billionaire Anil Agarwal, will discuss and authorize an interim dividend. The first interim dividend for Vedanta's fiscal year 2023-24 will be paid out at this meeting on Monday, May 22. May 30, 2023 (Tuesday) is the record date for assessing whether shareholders are qualified for this dividend.

Vedanta said a meeting of its board is "proposed to be scheduled on Monday, May 22, 2023, to consider and approve the first interim dividend on equity shares, if any, for the financial year 2023-24. Please note that the record date for the purpose of determining the entitlement of the equity shareholders for the said dividend, if declared, is being fixed as Tuesday, May 30, 2023," company said In a regulatory filing.

Shares of Vedanta experienced a nearly 2 percent increase, reaching Rs 284.20 per share on the BSE during Thursday's trading session. Over the past five days, the stock has risen by 1 percent; however, it has seen an 11 percent decline on a year-to-date basis. The 52-week high for Vedanta shares was Rs 340.75 on Jan. 20, 2023, and the 52-week low was Rs 206.1 on Jul. 1, 2022.

Vedanta is expected to continue paying a large dividend in FY24E and FY25E, thus domestic brokerage house Nuvama Institutional Equities put in a payout per share of Rs. 45 in each of those years. Vedanta is awaiting final lender approval.

Systematix Institutional Equities said that Vedanta's FY23 dividend payout contributed to the reduction of debt at Vedanta Resources, the company's parent company. A substantial decline in energy prices, particularly for coal, according to the brokerage, may keep dividends high at Rs 60-80 per share during FY24 and FY25, meaning a yield of 22-29 percent and offering strong downside support.