Tecom board recommends $54m interim dividend after strong first-half profit

The board of Tecom Group, the operator of business districts in Dubai, has recommended an interim cash dividend of Dh200 million ($54.45m) after the company posted a strong profit in the first half of the year.

The dividend payment, subject to shareholder approval at its coming annual general meeting, is in line with the company’s previously announced dividend policy of distributing Dh800m annually through October 2025, the company said in a statement on Monday to the Dubai Financial Market, where its shares are traded.

The first interim dividend payment of Dh200m is scheduled for payment to shareholders this month, the company said.

Tecom Group raised Dh1.7 billion ($462.8m) from its initial public offering earlier this year. The IPO was 21 times oversubscribed, with total gross demand at more than Dh35bn.

The company’s shares were listed on the Dubai Financial Market in July.

The group reported a 43.4 per cent jump in first-half profit to Dh428m as revenue rose by about 16 per cent to Dh989.4m.

The company’s second-quarter profit rose 54 per cent annually to Dh237m on the back of higher revenue.

“Our strong performance in the first half of the year builds on our solid performance in 2021 and underscores the strength of our well-balanced business model, and the resilience of our diversified portfolio of quality, strategically located assets and value-added services,” chief executive Abdulla Belhoul said in August.

Tecom has a land bank of 375.3 hectares and access to additional land through an exclusive right of first offer with Dubai Holding Asset Management, which serves as a bedrock for future growth.

The group's 10 business districts — including Dubai Internet City, Dubai Media City, Dubai Studio City and Dubai Production City — are home to more than 7,800 companies.

Nine of the districts are in free zones that permit 100 per cent foreign ownership, with tenants including Meta, Google, Visa, BBC, CNN, Unilever and Dior.