Tel Aviv [Israel], January 25 (ANI/TPS): The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) reported that despite the war in Gaza and the October 7 massacre, TASE companies continued to distribute high dividends, but they were still down from 2022.
TASE firms distributed dividends of 27.2 billion Shekels (USD 7.4 billion) in 2023, compared to 28.6 billion Shekels (USD 7.8 billion) distributed in the record-setting year 2022.
62 per cent of the dividends were paid to public shareholders - 17 billion Shekels (USD 4.6 billion).
206 companies distributed a dividend in 2023, compared to 233 companies in 2022.
The dividend yield reached 2.9 per cent in 2023, the highest since 2017.
88 per cent of the total dividend amount was paid by companies included in the TASE's flagship index TA-125.
The Banking sector continued to lead with high dividends in an aggregate amount upwards of 8 billion Shekels (USD 2.2 billion), representing 30 per cent of the total dividend amount distributed by TASE companies. The Energy, Oil and Gas sector also stood out, with an average dividend yield of 7.6 per cent.
"Despite several pivotal events in Israel in 2023," said the TASE in a statement, "which had shaken the capital market and increased economic uncertainty - from the Judicial Reform and the repeated interest rate increases by the Bank of Israel, which significantly raised corporate financing costs, through to the breaking out of the Swords of Iron War on October 7, 40 per cent of the companies continued to distribute their profits to the shareholders."(ANI/TPS)
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