News

Published: Mar 23, 2023
Updated: Mar 23, 2023

Hindustan Zinc declares highest-ever dividend, shares jump 5%

Hindustan Zinc Ltd, a Vedanta Group firm, has approved a fourth interim dividend of ₹26 per equity share or 1,300 percent for FY 2022-23, amounting to ₹10,985.83 crore. This takes the company's total payout to shareholders to a record ₹32,000 crore this fiscal, making it one of the top-dividend payers in India. The company's shares soared 5% to ₹325.2 after the announcement.

Record dividend payout for FY'23 Hindustan Zinc declared its ever-highest dividend of ₹32,000 crore for FY'23, making it among the largest dividend payers in India. The company has declared 39 dividends since 28 June, 2001. In the past 12 months, the company has declared an equity dividend amounting to ₹49.50 per share.

Government opposes Vedanta's acquisition of zinc assets

Hindustan Zinc, in which Vedanta holds a 64.92% stake, has long been unsuccessfully trying to buy back the residual government stake. Recently, the government opposed Hindustan Zinc's proposed $2.98 billion acquisition of zinc assets from Vedanta Ltd as the Rajasthan- based company has long been a cash cow for oil-to-metals conglomerate, squeezing out rich dividends.

Board notes letter from the mines ministry The board has noted the letter dated 17 February 2023, received from the mines ministry, which had opposed Vedanta's move to sell the zinc assets and had threatened to take legal action to stop the sale of Africa-based assets to Hindustan Zinc. In a letter to Hindustan Zinc, the mines ministry had said the deal is a "related party transaction" and the government would "like to reiterate" its dissent.

Shares jump on the dividend announcement news

Hindustan Zinc's announcement of a record dividend payout has given a boost to its share price. However, the government's opposition to Vedanta's proposed sale of zinc assets to Hindustan Zinc has cast a shadow over the deal. Nevertheless, the company remains the largest and only integrated producer of zinc, lead and silver in India, operating the world's largest underground zinc mining operation at its Rampura Agucha mine in Rajasthan.