Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Sahara International Petrochemical Company (Sipchem) will pay a 12.5 percent cash dividend, or SAR 1.25 per share (for a total of more than 725 million shares), for the first half of 2023.
The company said in a Tadawul statement that the total dividend of SAR906.40 million ($241.63 million) will be paid on July 19.
During the past three financial years, the company has paid cash dividends at SAR 5.99 per share.
Sipchem’s net profit for the first quarter of 2023 fell by 56 percent to SAR 470.3 million ($125.8 million) from SAR 1.07 billion ($282.6 million) in the same period of 2022.
The company’s revenue decreased by 16 percent to SAR 2.14 billion ($572.6 million) from SAR 2.57 billion ($691.5 million) in the first quarter of 2022.
The decline in profit was attributed to lower sales prices and higher costs, particularly for raw materials.
Despite the decline in profit, Sipchem’s management said that it is “confident in the long-term growth prospects of the company” and that it is “committed to delivering sustainable value to its shareholders.”