Equity income - is the old model broken?

Reassessing the sector during Covid-19

The lockdowns put in place to slow the spread of coronavirus have brought about an unprecedented demand shock for companies in the most affected industries.

In a high-profile example - from a sector so hard-hit as to be something of a special case - Royal Dutch Shell cut its dividend for the first time since 1940 on 30 April "to provide financial resilience and further flexibility to manage the uncertainty", in the words of the board. While cutting, suspending or delaying dividends may be the best option for a company, it can be frustrating for investors who had looked forward to receiving the cash, and especially painful for those relying on dividends for their income. Four reasons why your stocks have cut dividends Shell is, of course...