Vietnam top brewer Sabeco to pay 15% dividend, Thai owner to receive $42 mln

Vietnam Beverage Company Limited, indirectly owned by Thai beverage giant ThaiBev, is set to receive VND1,030 billion ($42.4 million) from a dividend payout by Vietnam’s top brewer Sabeco.

Sabeco has approved an advance dividend payout in cash of 15% of par value, or VND1,500 ($0.062) per share, with the payment date set for February 7, 2024, the firm announced Tuesday.

In November, Sabeco, listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE) as SAB, doubled its charter capital to VND12,825.6 billion ($528.2 million), equivalent to 1.28 billion shares. Vietnam Beverage Company Limited now owns a 53.59% stake in the beer maker.

Vietnam’s State Capital Investment Corporation (SCIC) is set to receive VND693 billion ($28.5 million) from the divident payment.

ThaiBev spent almost $5 billion on buying a 51% stake in Sabeco in December 2017. With Sabeco’s latest dividend payout, ThaiBev is set to receive over VND9,280 billion ($382.2 million) in accumulative dividend from Sabeco over six years.

Sabeco posted an after-tax profit of VND1.07 trillion ($43.7 million) in the third quarter of 2023, down 23% year-on-year. The company recorded a net revenue of VND7.4 trillion ($301 million) in the period, a decrease of over 11%, according to its financial statement.

In the first nine months of the year, Sabeco made a net revenue of VND21.94 trillion ($892.6 million) and an after-tax profit of nearly VND3.3 billion ($134,260), down 12% and 25.7% over the same period last year, respectively.

SAB shares edged up 0.61% to VND65,600 ($2.7) at the close on Thursday.