WBC, ANZ, SPK, MEL- 4 NZX dividend-paying blue-chip stocks

Blue-chip stocks are stocks of well-established firms which are also often market leaders and have a good history of paying dividends. These companies have been in the business for a long time and have their market cap in billions.

On 13 May, the benchmark S&P/NZX 50 Index lost 0.08% on Friday. However, the S&P/NZX 10 Index, a measure of the performance of 10 of the largest companies in the S&P/NZX 50 Index, was up 0.11% at 10,848.35.

On this note, let’s look at how much dividend these 4 NZX blue-chip stocks are paying.

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Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (NZX:ANZ; ASX:ANZ)

ANZ, a banking and financial services provider, has a market cap of NZ$77.92 billion and has given a return of -7% YTD.

DO READ: WBC: ANZ: How did 2 banking stocks perform in their half-year results?

ANZ made a payment of 142 cps as dividend for FY21 and possesses a dividend yield of 8.1%. The Group has announced a 2022 interim dividend of 72cps with attached imputation credits of 9cps. The dividend will be paid on 1 July 2022.

On 13 May, ANZ ended the trading session at $27.89, up 0.5% from its previous close.

Spark New Zealand Limited (NZX:SPK; ASX:SPK)

NZ’s telecom giant Spark has a market cap of NZ$9.17 billion and has given a return of 7.5% YTD.

Spark paid an H1 FY22 dividend of 12.5cps on 8 April 2022. SPK has a dividend yield of 7.3%. Spark also confirmed to pay a dividend guidance of 25cps for FY22 while announcing its half-year results.

On 13 May, SPK ended the trading session at $4.9, up 1.34% from its previous close.

Westpac Banking Corporation Limited (NZX:WBC, ASX:WBC)

Australia’s first bank and financial services provider, Westpac, has a market cap of NZ$92.21 billion. The stock has given a YTD return of 12.4%.

WBC’s strong earnings enabled it to raise its annual dividend payments to 118cps in FY21 and has a dividend yield of 7.1%. Westpac will pay an interim dividend of 61cps on 24 June 2022 for H1 FY22. The dividends will be paid to the shareholders on 27 June 2022.

ALSO READ: Westpac profits rise by 9% to NZ$635, declares dividend

On 13 May, WBC ended the trading session at $26.34, up 0.34% from its previous close.

Meridian Energy Limited (NZX:MEL; ASX:MEZ)

One of the NZ’s biggest power generators, Meridian, has a market cap of NZ$11.52 billion. The stock has given a YTD return of -4.5%.

DO READ: Budget 2022: FM Robertson stresses health, low-emissions economy as priorities

Meridian recently changed its dividend policy with its payout range increasing to 80%-100% of free cash flow from the previous 75%-90%. Meridian paid an interim dividend of 5.85cps on 8 April 2022. Meridian has a dividend yield of 4.9%.

On 13 May, MEL ended the trading session at $4.47, down 3.04% from its previous close.

Bottom Line

Blue-chip companies paying dividends can give some protection to investors’ portfolios from some of the risks posed by the present uncertain environment.

(NOTE: Currency is reported in NZ Dollar unless stated otherwise)