IA calls for companies to publish dividend policy

Interim dividend payments on the rise

The Investment Association (IA) has called for companies to publish a distribution policy on how dividends are paid as part of a drive towards greater transparency on payouts.

The distribution policy should clearly set out the company approach toward paying dividends and other capital to shareholders, the IA said in a report on dividend payments conducted on behalf of the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. This new approach will allow for a more transparent and long-term focus, the trade body said. The IA highlighted that companies have increasingly been moving towards paying interim dividends, which are not subjected to shareholder voting. IA recruits AREF to expand property expertise Furthermore, 22% of FTSE-listed companies pay...