Q2 dividends soar to £29.2bn
UK dividends have shifted up a gear, with payouts reaching a record for a second quarter, according to the latest UK Dividend Monitor from Capita Asset Services.
The financial sector and housebuilders benefited from Q2
Headline dividends in the second quarter of 2015 reached £29.2billion, the highest second-quarter payout on record and an annual rise of 13.2 per cent. At the underlying level, which strips out special dividends, the total payout hit £28.3billion, the highest for any quarter on record.
This represented a 12.7 per cent annual increase.
The biggest contribution to the growth was made by the financial sector, whose dividends increased by 33.3 per cent on a headline basis, contributing more than a third of the quarter’s total. Housebuilders also benefited.
By contrast, dividends fell among utilities companies.