The Singapore stock market has always been a haven for dividend investors.
There is a wide breadth of stocks listed on the exchange that pay out consistent dividends, allowing investors to enjoy a stream of steady passive income.
What’s even more attractive are companies that steadily raise their dividends over time.
Such businesses make for great long-term investments as their share prices will usually rise in tandem, providing investors with capital appreciation in addition to a larger flow of passive income.
Here are four Singapore stocks that recently increased their dividends that you may wish to include in your buy watchlist.
DFI Retail Group (SGX: D01)
DFI Retail Group is a pan-Asian retailer that operates supermarkets, hypermarkets, health and beauty stores and convenience stores.
Some of the brands under the group include Cold Storage, Giant, Guardian, 7-Eleven, and Mannings.
The retailer reported a substantial improvement in its underlying profit for 2023.
Revenue stayed flat year on year at US$9.2 billion for 2023 while underlying profit leapt more than fivefold year on year to US$155 million.
In line with the good results, DFI Retail Group hiked its 2023 dividend to US$0.08 from just S$0.03 a year ago.
Profitability improved because of a substantial recovery from DFI Retail Group’s Health and Beauty and Convenience Store divisions.
At Maxim’s, there was also an increased recognition of profits from associates while Yonghui, its China supermarket investment, reported lower losses.
2024, however, should see growth slow substantially because of higher interest rates and inflation crimping consumption demand.
Management remains confident in the longer-term prospects for DFI Retail Group.
United Overseas Bank Ltd (SGX: U11)
United Overseas Bank, or UOB, is Singapore’s third-largest bank.
The lender reported an impressive set of earnings for 2023 as high interest rates buoyed its net interest income.
Total income rose 20% year on year to S$13.9 billion while operating profit climbed 24% year on year to S$8.2 billion.
Net profit ended up 25% higher year on year at S$5.7 billion even after accounting for one-off expenses relating to the bank’s Citigroup (NYSE: C) acquisition.
Excluding these integration expenses, UOB’s net profit would have been 26% higher year on year at S$6.1 billion.
A final dividend of S$0.85 was declared, taking 2023’s dividend to S$1.70 per share, 26% higher than the S$1.35 paid out a year ago.
The bank is aiming for low single-digit loan growth for 2024 along with double-digit fee income growth.
UOB has also completed its integration of Citigroup’s consumer banking franchise in Malaysia and Indonesia with Thailand slated for completion in the second quarter of this year.
IHH Healthcare Berhad (SGX: Q0F)
IHH Healthcare is an integrated healthcare provider operating a portfolio of healthcare brands such as Parkway, Pantai, Gleneagles, Fortis, and Acibadem.
The group offers a comprehensive range of healthcare services ranging from primary to quaternary care.
For 2023, the group reported a 16% year on year increase in revenue to RM 20.9 billion along with a 91% year-on-year surge in net profit to RM 3 billion.
Excluding exceptional items, net profit would have dipped by 7% year on year to RM 1.3 billion.
IHH Healthcare also generated a positive free cash flow of RM 1.8 billion for the year.
The group declared a second cash dividend of RM 0.055, bringing its total dividend for 2023 to RM 0.186, inclusive of a special dividend of RM 0.096 paid out in June last year.
This level of dividends is more than double the RM 0.07 that was paid out in 2022.
Looking ahead, IHH has revised its dividend policy upwards from “no less than 20%” of the group’s core net profit to “no less than 30%”.
Sembcorp Industries (SGX: U96)
Sembcorp Industries, or SCI, is a blue-chip utility and urban solutions provider.
The group turned in a mixed set of results for 2023.
Revenue fell by 10% year on year to S$7 billion with its core Gas and Related Services division witnessing a 17% year-on-year drop in revenue to S$5.5 billion.
Net profit increased by 11% year on year to S$942 million but included exceptional items and a loss from discontinued operations.
Stripping these out, SCI’s core net profit would have surged by 38% year on year to S$1 billion.
The utility group’s total dividend for 2023 came up to S$0.13, slightly higher than the S$0.12 paid out a year ago.
In line with its Investor Day goals of building and growing its renewables portfolio, SCI saw its gross renewables capacity increase from 9.8 GW in 2022 to 13.8 GW as of February 2024.
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Disclosure: Royston Yang does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.
