Analysts' forecasts about the size of dividends of leading Russian companies usually turn out to be quite realistic, since the highest profitability is provided by large organizations whose activities are stable and are not subject to major changes due to negative factors. Mining enterprises and holdings are traditionally considered the most profitable in the Russian Federation, and among them there are not only oil and gas companies, but also organizations involved in the processing of natural minerals. Also, high profitability is ensured by the acquisition of shares of mobile operators, which are components of large holdings, therefore they constantly redistribute funds and attract new investors.

Approximate size of dividends from leading Russian companies

The leader in the profitability rating among Russian companies is Norilsk Nickel, whose shares, in accordance with analytical forecasts, will bring about 11 percent per annum. Shareholders of Surgutneftegaz and Gazprom Neft can also count on consistently high profits, which should bring about nine and seven percent per annum, respectively. The leaders of the rating also include mobile operators MTS and VimpelCom, whose shareholders expect profits of nine and eight and a half percent per annum, respectively. An additional advantage from purchasing shares of the last two companies will be the opportunity to receive interim quarterly dividends, which will expand the ability of shareholders to control their invested funds.

How to identify Russian companies with high dividends?

Interested shareholders can identify those Russian companies that will bring the highest dividends based on a number of criteria. These include decisions made by their governing bodies, parent companies, founders and owners. In addition, you should take into account the company's current debt level, dividend payment history, and management's dividend policy. Thus, the leaders of the rating include E.ON Russia, which is a subsidiary of the German company E.ON. The expected return for the shareholders of this subsidiary will be 7.5 percent per annum, and the actual achievement of this result is ensured by the decision of the parent company, which ordered all profits to be used to pay dividends.

While the Central Bank of the Russian Federation lowered the key rate, making investments in deposits less attractive, domestic corporations, on the contrary, paid more and increased the dividend yield of their securities. In more than 15 securities, investors could receive double-digit dividend yields. Here is a list of the 5 most profitable ones.

No. 1 - MGTS JSC, AP

Dividend amount per ordinary share*: RUB 233.
Dividend yield as of the closing date of the register: 16.48%

Dividend amount per preferred share: RUB 233.
Dividend yield as of the closing date of the register: 16.64%

MTS, as the parent company, continued this year to “pull” money from its “daughter” - MGTS. The amount of payments turned out to be greater than the entire profit of MGTS, and to meet the needs of the mobile operator it was necessary to use retained earnings from previous years.

No. 2 - Rosseti up

Dividend amount per preferred share: RUB 0.368355281.
Dividend yield as of the closing date of the register: 15.74%

According to official documents, the total amount paid as dividends on each preferred share of Rosseti is set at 10% of the Company's net profit, divided by the number of shares constituting 25% of the authorized capital. Since the number of "prefs" in reality is less than 25%, the profit ratio actually turns out to be lower. However, at the end of 2016, Rosseti’s net profit amounted to 222.4 billion rubles. (largely due to the revaluation of the value of subsidiaries), the company had to obediently redistribute all profits in accordance with the charter. The amount turned out to be quite impressive, but there is a high risk that this was a one-time increase in dividends. Based on the results of 9 months. In 2017, the company’s net profit under RAS fell 25 times compared to the same period last year and amounted to 7.3 billion rubles.

No. 3 - Tatneft up

Dividend amount per preferred share: RUB 50.59.
Dividend yield as of register closing date: 15.04%

This year, Tatneft adopted a new dividend policy, providing for a payout ratio of 50% under IFRS/RAS, as well as the payment of interim dividends. As a result, in 2017, in addition to annual dividends for 2016, the company accrued dividends for 9 months. At the same time, it allocated 75% according to RAS to the latter. The company attributed the higher-than-expected payout to strong free cash flow and a lack of better uses of cash. As a result, the total dividend yield on Tatneft preferred shares was 15.04% versus 6.19% in 2016.

No. 4 - Mostotrest JSC

Dividend amount per ordinary share: RUB 21.09.
Dividend yield as of the closing date of the register: 14.41%

Although the general macroeconomic situation had a negative impact on the activities of many construction companies, Mostotrest showed excellent financial results at the end of 2016. In addition, at the end of October it adopted a new dividend policy, which assumes that at least 30% of profits under IFRS should be allocated to dividends and allows for the distribution of profits for 3, 6 and 9 months, as well as at the end of the full year. As a result, the company pleased its shareholders twice by paying dividends for 9 months of 2017 in addition to the traditional annual dividends.

No. 5 - Severstal JSC

Dividend amount per ordinary share: RUB 110.06.
Dividend yield as of the closing date of the register: 13.71%

Severstal continued to please investors with quarterly dividend payments, which this time exceeded the forecasts of market experts. Stable business, high profitability, low debt and high cash flow, which the company traditionally sends all of as dividends, have made Severstal shares this year one of the most interesting dividend stories on the Russian market. This could not have happened without the help of rising steel prices given the comfortable ruble exchange rate.

The 2016 dividend season has ended, the AGM has passed, and dividends have already been deposited into the account. There were many interesting events, news and intrigues. In this article I will summarize the results of the past season, highlight the most interesting events and publish the results of my dividend portfolio of shares.

The most important event of this year is the government’s order on the payment of dividends by state-owned companies based on the results of 2015 in the amount of at least 50% of net profit under RAS or IFRS, whichever is greater. Prior to this, there was an order to pay dividends in the amount of 25% of the state of emergency from RAS. The reason for the innovation was the budget deficit, so the government decided to raise the bar in order to get more money into the budget. Disputes in the government lasted for a very long time, but a decision was made.

On expectations of dividend increases, share prices of state-owned companies began to rise. The capitalization of some companies increased by tens of percent, and the MICEX index reached a new historical maximum.

Rating of dividend stocks 2016

First, let's look at which stocks' dividends have increased the most compared to the previous year. Below is the rating of shares whose dividends at the end of 2015 doubled or more.

As you can see from the table, there are quite a lot of such shares. Some companies' payouts have increased by hundreds or even thousands of percent. The leader in terms of dividend growth was Lenzoloto's preferred shares, which usually pay high dividends, but did not pay them last year due to a lawsuit. This year, after the end of the trial, the company returned to its previous practice.

In second place is MGTS, which paid shareholders 222 rubles per share, using not only the net profit of 2015, but also the undistributed profit for previous periods. Such high payments are the first time in the company’s practice and are due to the majority shareholder, AFK Sistema, which, after the seizure of Bashneft shares into state ownership, needs money for new investment projects.

In third place, FGC UES, a subsidiary of the state company Rosseti, by order of the government, paid 95% of the emergency under RAS. It can be noted that in the TOP, in addition to FSK, there were many other companies from the energy sector: Inter RAO, IDGC of Volga, Tomsk RP, Mosenergo, MOESK and others. The increase in net profit in 2015 and the withdrawal of profits through dividends by the parent company, Rosseti, forced the dividends of its subsidiaries to increase by hundreds of percent; many companies gave Rosseti 50% of the private equity. Which, in turn, affected the quotes - the MICEX Electric Power Industry Index has been the leader in terms of profitability since the beginning of the year.

However, the payment of dividends did not affect Rosseti themselves at all. At the beginning of the year, investors bought shares in the hope of good dividends for 2015, awaiting government orders and remembering the words of the company's management, which planned to pay dividends. But the company severely broke the expectations of investors, since at the end of 2015, according to RAS, it received a paper loss, and in accordance with the law, decided not to pay dividends.

But since the budget still needs money, and squeezing profits in conditions of a budget deficit is not good, Rosseti decided to pay dividends for the first quarter. Rosseti shares may become one of the most profitable in 2017, as they will receive dividends from their subsidiaries plus additional profit from the revaluation of shares of the same subsidiaries. However, it is necessary to take into account what government orders regarding dividends of state-owned companies will be in force in 2017, as well as the fact that part of Rosseti’s profits is sent to problematic subsidiaries.

Gazprom also managed to fight off paying 50% of IFRS, citing a large investment program. The issue was discussed in the government and until the last moment no one knew from what profit they would pay. As a result, Gazprom paid dividends for 2015 of 7.4 rubles per share or 50% of RAS, which is slightly more than last year’s payments of 7.2 rubles. If Gazprom had paid 50% according to IFRS, the dividends would have been 16.62 rubles.

Rating of stocks by dividend yield

Source: Larisa Morozova

The leaders are the shares of MGTS, Tomsk Republic of Kazakhstan, and TNS Energo Rostov. As you can see, from the previous table not all companies were included in this one. Rapid growth in dividends does not always translate into high returns.

As before, high dividend yields are the lot of low-liquidity stocks; there are no blue chips on the list, except for Surgutneftegaz. Therefore, those who buy such shares for large dividends should understand very well that they may be one-time, and then problems may arise with their sale. High returns this year do not guarantee the same returns next year.

For example, the dividends of Surgutneftegaz are due to the depreciation of the ruble in 2015, as a result of which the company reflected in the report a profit from the revaluation of currency on deposits. But already in the report for the first half of 2016, the company shows a loss.

Krasnoyarskenergosbyt's dividends turned out to be so large due to the creation of a smaller volume of reserves, but it is not at all necessary that the same thing will happen again in 2016.

The Saratov Refinery has paid good dividends for two years in a row, but interim reports for the current year show a noticeable decrease in net profit.

Dividend yield of my portfolio

In this part of the article, I will summarize the profitability of my dividend portfolio for 2016. Yield is calculated net as the value of dividends after payment of tax to the amount of funds invested in the share. I am publishing this as a real example of the profit that dividends can bring, and not as a recommendation, so I do not advise anyone to copy its composition.

In percentage terms, the greatest profit was brought by ordinary shares of Kazanorgsintez; dividends increased more than 3 times from 1.0105 to 3.2261 rubles and brought 48%. Prefs were traditionally paid 25 kopecks.

MGTS shares were purchased exactly a year ago after the dividend cutoff in the hope of AFK Sistema withdrawing profits, and they fully justified themselves, a record 222 rubles, a yield of 38%. It is difficult to say what they will be in 2016, but I am sure that payments will continue.

Shares of the Tomsk Distribution Company, which last year gave only 3%, this time brought several times more than 23.6%, payments increased 10 times.

I really like how Phosagro’s dividends are growing, for 2015 225 rubles per share and 20% dividend yield. I bought FSK shares late, but I’m still pleased with the result. Surgutneftegaz dividends in 2015 decreased to 6.92 rubles, but remained above 10%. There is a risk that in 2017 there will be less. The Saratov Oil Refinery has the same risks.

I bought Protek on news of super dividends in the amount of 16 rubles per share, and managed to buy it at a good price, which provided 15%. Now the shares have recovered after the cut-off and have already exceeded the purchase price.

Acron increased its dividends to 180 rubles per share in 2015, which yielded 13.7%, and the company plans to increase them in the future. M.Video in 2015 reduced its dividends to 20 rubles per share, in the past it was 52. But it was clear that this was a one-time payment. Nevertheless, the company shows good results.

MTS also reduced its dividends in 2015 to 19.62 rubles. The management states that in the next few years, MTS dividends will be at least 20-25 rubles; in my opinion, one should not expect much growth.

EON Russia, which now bears the name Unipro, suffered heavy losses due to a major accident last year. Part of the losses will be covered by the insurance company, but it will take several years and tens of billions of rubles to restore the consequences. However, despite this sad event, Unipro paid dividends in 2015 in the amount of 0.197 rubles per share.

The Moscow Exchange shows excellent growth rates in dividends and quotes: 7.11 rubles per share for 2015. And even if the dividend yield is now less than 10%, if such growth continues, then the 10% threshold will be overcome.

Gazpromneft's dividends for 2015 amounted to 6.47 rubles per share; next year it is planned that they will be 9 rubles.

Sberbank's dividends in 2016 increased by 337% and amounted to 1.97 rubles. The low base effect had an effect, but the differential return was not very large. Shares of Sberbank and AFK Sistema should not be purchased as dividend shares, although the companies themselves are good and their profits will grow.

Since the beginning of the year, the portfolio's return has been 22.4% per annum. In accordance with my personal financial plan, I have begun selling off my stock portfolio and plan to sell it entirely in the coming months.

22.02.17 351 019 3

With Vladimir Petrovich and Alisher Burkhanovich

When there will be meetings, on what date the register will be recorded - they write in the “for investors” section on the company’s website.

In the case of Megafon dividends for nine months, the process was as follows:

Meeting of the board of directors and publication of minutes with the amount of dividends

Fixation of the register for participation in the EGM (does not concern us)

Publication of EGM results, approved payment of dividends

The last day when you can buy shares to receive dividends (then - the weekend, plus we allow time for transactions on the exchange itself)

Record date for dividends

Money credited to brokerage account

Megafon payment report

Subscribe to company news. Neither the Moscow Exchange website nor the mandatory information disclosure websites allow you to subscribe to company news. But checking the news manually is inconvenient, especially if there are several companies. I know of two ways to receive news by email: the London Stock Exchange website and the company's own Investor Relations services.

Subscribe to the London Stock Exchange website. Shares of many Russian companies are traded simultaneously in Moscow on the Moscow Exchange and in London on the London Stock Exchange. The London Stock Exchange website allows you to subscribe to company news and receive it by email without delay.

You need to register for free and then enable subscriptions to company news in your personal account in the Email Alerts section:

If you want to invest in shares yourself, then one way or another you will come across English: on the LSE website, in issuer documents, at company teleconferences for investors. Unfortunately, if you do not have at least a minimum knowledge of the language, then the globalization train leaves without you.

Subscription through the company's Investor Relations. Any company whose shares are traded on an exchange has a section for investors and shareholders on its website. In this section there is an opportunity to subscribe to news for investors. There must also be contact information for the investor relations service. If you don't subscribe, ask to have your address added to the investor messaging list. I was always signed.

Megafon has the opportunity to subscribe independently, but only in the English version of the site:

In my experience, a subscription to the London Stock Exchange needs to be set up in any case. Because, for example, Megafon and Phosagro make their own mailings with a delay of up to several days and do not send out all the documents that are published on the LSE.

In addition to working with company documents, you can use ready-made aggregated data on dividends. Examples: the service of the investment company “Dokhod” and the service of the BCS company.

T+2 and the “dividend gap”

If you want to buy shares, get included in the register for dividends and immediately sell them, consider two points: the T+2 settlement mode on the Moscow Exchange and how dividends are taken into account in the share price.

T+2. Shares on the Moscow Exchange are traded in the T+2 settlement mode. This means that settlements occur on the second day (+2) after the transaction date (T). When you buy shares on the stock exchange, you enter into a transaction by fixing the quantity and price. You then have two days to bring the money and the seller has two days to bring the shares.

Of course, the broker will not let you buy shares if there is no money in the brokerage account. But if there are other securities lying there, then you can easily make a transaction using them as collateral, and you will have two days to transfer money from the bank.

Delayed settlements also have a downside: if you sell shares today, you will only be able to withdraw money from the broker two days later, when the transaction is settled.

In the context of dividends, the T+2 regime means that in order to be included in the Megafon register as of December 20, 2016, we needed to buy shares on December 16 or earlier:

Dividend gap. When the last day on which one could be included in the register for dividends passes, the price of the share, as a rule, falls by the amount of these dividends.

The money seems to be leaving the company, since it will soon be paid to the shareholders included in the register. Therefore, those who buy shares later, without the right to dividends, will want a discount on the amount of dividends. Yesterday's owners do not lose anything: their shares have fallen in price, but they received dividends.

The price of a stock does not always fall precisely due to the amount of dividends: sometimes it recovers the fall quite quickly. But there is such a pattern, and it must be taken into account.

For example, as mentioned above, the last day to be included in the Megafon register for dividends was December 16. The closing price of Megafon on December 16, 2016 was 616 rubles. The closing price on December 19 is 590.5 rubles. The dividend gap amounted to 25.5 rubles with dividends of 24.19 per share. In other words, the price per share fell almost by the amount of dividends - 25.5 R:

Dividend yield and dividend policy

Dividend yield is the ratio of dividends paid to the share price.

For example, if a share costs 100 rubles, we owned the share for a year and the amount of dividends paid per year on this share is 1 ruble, then the dividend yield is 1% per annum.

Dividend yield is a mixed bag. Dividend payments may be unevenly distributed over time and vary depending on external and internal factors in the company. For example, Megafon announced dividends for the first nine months of 2016 before the end of the year and paid them in January 2017. But dividends for 2014 were paid with an almost one-year delay - in December 2015. Many people were worried then.

Based on operating results for 2014 and 2015, Megafon paid approximately 40 billion rubles in dividends, or 65 rubles per share per year. Today, February 10, 2017, the price of one share is 635 rubles. If the volume of payments remains the same in the future, the dividend yield will be about 9% per annum.

Past dividend yield serves as a guide. But at the end of the day, we're interested in future returns. To determine future profitability, you need to know what the size of dividends will be and whether there will be dividends at all. To do this you need to know the dividend policy.

Dividend policy is a set of rules by which a company determines the amount of dividends paid.

Some companies clearly state that they do not plan to pay dividends in the coming years. Others give florid formulations from which it is difficult to draw concrete conclusions. Still others give specific guidelines in numbers: 75% of net profit, 50% of free cash flow, at least 20 rubles per share.

Over time, a company's dividend policy may change, so there is no need to perceive it as something unshakable.

Depending on the stability of payments and the transparency of the dividend policy, a share can acquire the features of a bond, providing a predictable flow of payments. For example, in April 2016, MTS announced its goal to annually return at least 25 rubles per share to shareholders from 2016 to 2018 and maintain a minimum payout of 20 rubles per share. In such a situation, buying MTS shares at a price of about 250 rubles, you can count on a ruble yield of about 7% only due to the minimum promised level of dividends.

If dividends depend on indicators such as net profit, cash flow, debt levels or capital adequacy, then a new task arises - to estimate the size of these indicators in the future. We don’t have a club of certified financial analysts here, so the only assessment method available to us is the forecasts of the company itself. Forecasts for the next year may be contained in the financial report based on the results of the previous financial year or announced on teleconferences for investors.

Investing in shares without the ability to influence the situation in the company is a matter of faith. The belief that the controlling shareholder will be guided not only by his immediate needs, but will consistently build a public company that is predictable for all shareholders. It is a matter of faith in the management hired by shareholders, the forecasts of this management and the ability to fulfill these forecasts. This is voting with money for faith in specific people.

What is the opportunity for a novice investor to purchase profitable shares in 2018? To invest in shares, you should choose a company that consistently pays high dividends to its shareholders. The right choice can be made only on the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the financial criteria of the joint-stock company.

Investing in shares is one of the safest types of investment, especially when it comes to buying shares of large, world-famous companies.

Shares and dividends

A novice investor should first understand the basic instruments of financial investment and determine ways to make a profit.

• Stock – one of the most profitable and convenient investment instruments on the securities market. Profit can be received in the form of dividends at the end of the year. Another way to make a profit is to sell the securities themselves at a higher price if the price rises rapidly on the stock exchange.
• Dividends - this is part of the profit of a joint-stock company that is used to pay shareholders. The General Meeting of Shareholders regulates the amount of dividends as a percentage of the total profit based on the dividend policy adopted by the company.

Ordinary and preferred shares: features and differences

The size of dividends is determined by the type of shares purchased by the company's client. There are ordinary shares and preferred shares.

Preferred shares allow the holder to receive a guaranteed fixed payment, regardless of the company's profitability.

The size of the payment on ordinary shares directly depends on the net profit. If the company decides to reinvest funds in its development, dividends on common shares may not be paid this year.

Shareholders holding ordinary shares receive the right to vote at the general meeting of shareholders.

Dividend payment terms

The timing of dividend payments in Russian companies is determined by federal legislation (Federal Law “On Joint-Stock Companies”). After closing the register, the nominal holder is obliged to receive funds by bank transfer within 10 working days, other persons registered in the register - within 25 days.

The dividend calendar can be viewed on the Moscow Exchange website or, for example, the specialized website BKSExpress. The calendar displays information regarding the price of shares, the closing date of the register and the expected dividend yield. Knowing this data, you can make decisions about purchasing or selling shares of different companies during the year.

Based on the available data for 2017, it is possible to predict the size of dividends for 2018, payments for which will begin soon.

If we are talking about shares of foreign companies, the calendar of dividend payments can be viewed on brokerage websites or on the official website of the St. Petersburg and Moscow stock exchanges. The good news is that when you receive dividends on shares of foreign companies, you don’t have to worry about paying taxes in Russia, since they are paid by a foreign broker.

How to choose a profitable company

To make a profitable investment, you should pay attention to the following criteria:

1. dividend yield;
2. dividend payment history for the next few years;
3. existence of a dividend policy;
4. dynamics of dividends.

Which Russian companies have the maximum dividend size?

The Moscow Exchange presented dividends of Russian companies based on the results of last year. In 2017, the company that paid the largest dividends was Lenoenergo with an annual yield of 15.7%. The top five also included Aeroflot (11.3%), ALOROSA (9.5%), LSR (8.5%) and FGC UES (8%).

Statistics show that the leaders include enterprises engaged in the mining, energy, construction and communications industries.

Why are there no “first echelon” companies in the Top 10?

The fact is that they are more focused on preferred changes in the market value of securities.

Despite the high dividends paid by individual shareholders, many investors continue to primarily pay attention to the so-called “blue chips” - shares of large, stable companies characterized by stable financial performance and high liquidity.

The name Blue Cips comes from the world of gambling, as it is common knowledge that blue is the color of the most expensive tokens in casinos.

Fluctuations in the blue chip market are used to judge the state and dynamics of the securities market as a whole. Investing money in blue chip stocks indicates the investor’s desire to preserve their capital, because the potential profitability of such stocks is low for a number of reasons.

Their undoubted advantages lie in another plane:

• high liquidity, which characterizes the ability to quickly buy or sell a block of shares at the market price;
• narrow spread (small price fluctuations at the time of purchase and sale);
• low volatility, which allows you to minimize the risk of financial losses.

Which company shares are considered blue chips? First-tier companies include large monopolistic companies in their industries.

TOP Russian and foreign joint-stock companies

Based on Forbes statistics, securities of American companies traded in Russia are among the leaders of the most liquid stocks. The interest in shares of foreign companies can be explained by the interest of investors in preserving ruble savings from rising inflation and protecting them from devaluation.

The leading growth companies in 2018 include:

1. Netflix, Inc.
2. The Boeing Company.
3. Amazon.com, Inc.
4. PayPal Holdings, Inc.
5. Intel Corporation.
6. Visa Inc.
7. Microsoft Corporation.
8. Bank of America Corporation.
9. Apple Inc. and others.

Large companies will continue to develop despite difficult economic conditions. Consistently high demand for monopolists’ products or services will remain in any situation, which will reduce the risk of losses. You can start investing with small amounts and gradually increase the amount of money invested as your experience grows. A good option would be to use the services of a good financial expert.

To minimize risks, you should diversify your investment portfolio at the first stage of your investing career

It is better to manage your account personally and delve into all the details, however, if you do not have free time, you can use the trust management service by choosing a reliable broker.