Income investors rely on dividends as a source of passive income to supplement their earned income.
Hence, they look out for stocks that pay out a reliable and consistent dividend.
While paying a dividend is important, it is even better if this dividend can increase over time.
A higher dividend means your passive income can keep up with inflation and allows you to enjoy a higher level of disposable income.
Here are four Singapore stocks that recently upped their dividends.
StarHub Ltd (SGX: CC3)
StarHub is a telecommunication (telco) company that offers mobile, broadband and pay TV services for individuals while its enterprise division offers regional ICT and cybersecurity services to businesses.
The group announced a strong performance for its recent 2023 earnings.
Total revenue inched up 2% year on year to S$2.4 billion with service revenue rising 5% year on year to S$2 billion.
Net profit soared 140% year on year to S$150 million, buoyed by higher operating profit and lower net finance costs.
If we exclude non-recurring, one-off items, StarHub’s net profit would still have surged by 76.5% year on year.
The telco declared a final dividend of S$0.042, a 68% increase from the S$0.025 paid out a year ago.
2023’s total dividend came up to S$0.067, a 34% year-on-year increase over the previous year’s S$0.05.
StarHub expects stable revenue contributions from its Consumer and Enterprise divisions for 2024 with service revenue growing by between 1% to 3% year on year.
The group has guided for a total dividend of “at least six cents” for 2024, up from “at least five cents” in the previous year.
Civmec Ltd (SGX: P9D)
Civmec is an Australian integrated construction and engineering services provider to the energy, resources, infrastructure, marine, and defence sectors.
Its core capabilities include heavy engineering, precast concrete, site civil works, and shipbuilding, among others.
For the first half of fiscal 2024 (1H FY2024) ending 31 December 2023, Civmec saw its revenue increase by 17.5% year on year to A$492.3 million.
Net profit rose 12.8% year on year to A$31.9 million.
The business also generated 32% more operating cash flow than the prior year while free cash flow climbed 46.5% year on year to A$88.5 million.
The group upped its interim dividend by 25% year on year to A$0.025.
Management provided a bright outlook for the sector with sa combined forecast spend of over A$450 billion across its operating sectors for FY2024 to FY2027.
The group’s order book, however, dipped by 9.1% year on year to A$1 billion.
Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX: S68)
Singapore Exchange Limited, or SGX, is Singapore’s sole stock exchange operator.
The group reported a commendable set of earnings for 1H FY2024.
Revenue edged up 3.6% year on year to S$592.2 million but net profit declined by 1% year on year to S$281.6 million.
Stripping out one-off items, SGX’s net profit would have risen by 6.2% year on year to S$251.4 million.
The bourse operator generated a free cash flow of S$230.2 million, a 41% year-on-year jump from the S$163.1 million churned out a year ago.
SGX increased its quarterly dividend from S$0.08 to S$0.085.
The group intends to expand its multi-asset offerings while strengthening its global distribution capabilities.
SGX will also foster collaborations with partners and aims to maintain a mid-single-digit % increase in its dividend per share in the medium term.
DBS Group (SGX: D05)
DBS is Singapore’s largest bank by market capitalisation and offers a wide range of banking, investment, and insurance services for its customers.
The blue-chip bank reported a sparkling set of earnings for 2023.
Total income rose 22% year on year to S$20.2 billion, supported by higher overall interest rates that boosted its net interest income.
Profit before allowances climbed 29% year on year to S$12.1 billion.
Net profit increased by 23% year on year to S$10.1 billion.
DBS’s quarterly dividend was raised to S$0.54, up nearly 29% year on year from the S$0.42 paid out in the fourth quarter of 2022.
It was also higher than the previous quarter’s S$0.48 dividend per share.
CEO Piyush Gupta provided a sanguine outlook and maintained guidance for net interest income to end at around 2023 levels.
Fee income, however, is projected to grow by double digits year on year, supported by higher card spending and strong net inflows that will boost its wealth management division.
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Disclosure: Royston Yang owns shares of Singapore Exchange Limited and DBS Group.
