JOHANNESBURG, May 21 – South African lender Investec reported a record annual dividend for the fourth consecutive year after the specialist lender posted higher full-year profit across its South African and UK operations.
The South Africa- and UK-listed bank said adjusted operating profit before provisions rose 3.5% to £1.08 billion ($1.4 billion) for the financial year ended March 31, supported by a 4.2% increase in revenue.
Adjusted earnings per share increased 4.8% to 82.9 pence, exceeding the median analyst estimate of 80 pence in a Bloomberg survey.
The bank’s return on equity declined slightly by 30 basis points to 13.6%, remaining within its medium-term target range of 13% to 17%.
Profit from Investec’s southern Africa operations increased 5.5% to £488.3 million, while earnings from its UK business rose 1.3% to £462.7 million.
The lender declared a final dividend of 21 pence per share for the second half of the year, bringing the total annual payout to 38.5 pence per share.
The results reflect continued resilience in Investec’s private banking, wealth management and specialist lending operations despite a challenging global macroeconomic environment marked by higher interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty.
Investec has increasingly focused on strengthening capital returns to shareholders while expanding higher-margin advisory and private banking activities across its core markets.
The performance also highlights the relative strength of South Africa’s major banking groups, many of which have continued delivering solid earnings growth despite slower economic expansion and rising global market volatility.
