National Australia Bank Ltd asked investors for A$3.5 billion ($2.2 billion) and slashed its dividend to the lowest in almost three decades, as its first-half profit tumbled in part due to charges associated with the coronavirus pandemic.
) asked investors for A$3.5 billion and slashed its dividend to the lowest in almost three decades, as its first-half profit tumbled in part due to charges associated with the coronavirus pandemic.
The bank, Australia’s third-biggest, said it had decided to pay more than A$850 million in dividends, or about a third of what it paid last year, rather than scrapping it as it did not want investors who depended on the income to dump the stock. Its call to cut its interim dividend to 30 cents per share, lowest since 1993, from 83 cents last year may influence capital management decisions at other large lenders that are scheduled to report financial results over the coming fortnight.
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