As performance forecasts are successively disclosed, the A-share market has entered the mid-year report season, and the dividend distribution of listed companies has also been revealed. Which companies are planning mid-term dividends to "give red envelopes" to shareholders? And which companies are expected to become major dividend payers?

Wind data shows that as of July 15, a total of 113 listed companies in the A-share market have announced mid-term dividend plans, involving companies such as Beijing New Road & Bridge and Xianhui Technology. Since the beginning of this month, the number of companies announcing mid-term dividend plans has gradually increased. On the evening of the 15th alone, 11 companies including AVIC Materials, Aisen Shares, and Aopu Mai disclosed mid-term dividend proposals from actual controllers and controlling shareholders.

Which companies plan to distribute large dividends? In terms of the cash dividend ratio, many companies plan to distribute more than 30% of their profits. The cash dividend ratios of Wanmei Shares and Dongwu Securities are 60% and 50%, respectively. In terms of the dividend per share indicator, many companies have dividends per share exceeding 3 yuan. After the "10 for 10" distribution in the 2023 annual report season, Yindu Shares' mid-term dividend plan this year is proposed to be "10 for 5".

It is worth mentioning that compared to previous years, the enthusiasm for mid-term dividends by listed companies this year has significantly increased. The number of companies that have announced plans for mid-term dividends is close to 60% of the number of companies that implemented mid-term dividends in 2023.

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Under the guidance of the new "Nine National Rules" that emphasize cash dividends, the industry expects an increase in the number of dividends by listed companies within the year. Tian Lihui, Dean of the Institute of Financial Development at Nankai University, told reporters from First Financial that under strong supervision, listed companies will be more active in dividends. He also warned that investors need to pay attention to the sustainability of company dividends and assess whether they are based on stable profits and a good cash flow foundation.

Hundreds of companies have proposed mid-term dividend plans.

Since entering July, the number of listed companies announcing mid-term dividends has gradually increased. On the evening of the 15th alone, 11 companies "clustered" to announce dividend plans. Among them, Xianhui Technology and Youlide both plan to distribute 3 yuan for every 10 shares, while Honghua Digital Science and Yifeng Pharmacy plan to distribute 2.98 yuan and 2.5 yuan for every 10 shares, respectively.

In terms of progress, most of the 113 companies that have disclosed mid-term dividend plans are in the stage of board of directors' preliminary plan disclosure, with a number of 82, accounting for more than 70%; another 18 companies are in the shareholder proposal stage, and 12 have been approved by the shareholders' meeting.

Comparatively, the enthusiasm for mid-term dividends by listed companies this year has increased compared to previous years. To date, a total of 113 listed companies in the A-share market have announced mid-term dividend plans. This number is close to 60% of the number of listed companies that implemented mid-term dividends in 2023.Data indicates that in the recent three years (2021 to 2023), the number of A-share listed companies implementing mid-term dividends were 186, 138, and 194, respectively.

Tian Lihui believes that, based on the improvement of listed companies' performance and increase in profitability, the main reason for the increase in the number of dividends is the effective guidance of regulatory policies.

"At the same time, under the guidance of value investment philosophy, investors are paying more and more attention to cash returns. Listed companies, in order to attract and maintain investors, and to better carry out market value management, will proactively increase dividends," he mentioned.

Focusing on this mid-term dividend, which industries are the main force of mid-term dividends?

Looking at the hundred companies that have already proposed mid-term dividend plans, according to the industry classification by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), the top three industries are specialized equipment manufacturing, computer, communication, and other electronic equipment manufacturing, and electrical machinery and equipment manufacturing, with the number of companies being 11, 10, and 10, respectively. In addition, the software and information service industry, chemical raw materials and chemical products manufacturing industry, and automotive manufacturing industry also have more than 5 A-share companies planning to distribute dividends.

Which companies plan to distribute dividends generously? In terms of the dividend ratio, Marubi's mid-term cash dividend ratio reaches 60%, while Dongwu Securities and Laobaixing have a dividend ratio of 50%, and Guodian Nanrui has a dividend ratio of 40%.

Looking at the per-share dividend indicator, after the "10 for 10" in the 2023 annual report season, Yindou Shares' mid-term dividend plan this year is proposed to be "10 for 5". Several other companies have per-share dividends (including tax) exceeding 2 yuan, with Mailander proposing "10 for 4" and Youlide proposing "10 for 3".

In addition, it is worth mentioning that some industries have already started a dividend boom in advance, with many banks and securities firms having proposed mid-term dividend plans in the past two months.

According to public data, as of June 18, 26 listed securities firms plan to conduct mid-term dividends, accounting for 60% of the listed securities firms, among which the relevant proposals of 10 securities firms such as Guojin Securities, Haitong Securities, and Capital Securities have been passed by the shareholders' meeting.

It is expected that listed companies will be more active in dividends.This year, regulatory authorities have introduced a number of policies to encourage listed companies to increase dividend payouts.

The "Opinions on Strengthening the Supervision of Listed Companies (Trial)" issued by the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) on March 15th mentioned that efforts should be made to promote multiple dividends per year and to guide high-quality large-cap listed companies to pay dividends in the middle of the year, playing a leading role by example.

In April of this year, the new "Nine National Measures" explicitly demanded the strengthening of the supervision of cash dividends of listed companies, requiring that companies that have not paid dividends for many years or have a low dividend payout ratio be restricted from major shareholders' reduction and be subject to risk warnings. At the same time, it called for increased incentives for companies with high-quality dividends, using multiple measures to promote an increase in dividend yields.

As required, A-share listed companies should enhance the stability, continuity, and predictability of dividends, and promote multiple dividends per year, pre-dividend payments, and dividends before the Spring Festival.

Tian Lihui expects that under the supervision, listed companies will be more active in dividend payments. He also mentioned that strengthening the supervision of cash dividends will encourage companies to improve their governance structure, increase financial transparency and operational efficiency, focus on the effective allocation and use of capital, and enhance investors' confidence in the company's future development.

However, Tian Lihui also warned that investors need to pay close attention to the sustainability of the company's dividends, assessing whether they are based on stable profits and good cash flow.

"If future dividends cannot be sustained or increased, it will cause stock price fluctuations. It is also important to recognize that dividends will reduce the company's internal funds, affecting the company's potential for future expansion and reinvestment," he said. Dividend payments by listed companies should not come at the expense of the company's financial health and debt-paying ability; investors need to assess the company's balance sheet situation.