Jupiter CEO Brad Rogers
ASX-listed Jupiter Mines has declared an interim dividend of A$0.01, after receiving a R142-million, or A$11-million, dividend from Tshipi é Ntle Manganese Mining.
Jupiter will also receive R80-million, or A$6-million, in marketing profits from the South African manganese mining subsidiary.
Tshipi declared a dividend of R300-million for the six months ended December 31 – the first half of its 2024 financial year.
The interim dividend declared by Jupiter is above the average of the last two interim dividends, despite the free-on-board (FOB) manganese price prevailing for the period having been 17% lower than the average FOB manganese price prevailing across the prior two interim periods.
The manganese price averaged $3.45/t in the prior two interim periods and $2.85/t in the reporting period.
Jupiter’s latest dividend therefore exceeds its stated dividend policy of distributing at least 70% of the dividends it receives from Tshipi, by paying out 172%.
The interim dividends for the 2022 and 2023 financial years totalled $0.008, respectively.
Jupiter MD Brad Rogers says the latest dividend reflects the quality of the resource and management team at the Tshipi manganese mine, as well as the commitment of Jupiter to shareholder returns. This enables Jupiter to receive and distribute dividends throughout the manganese price cycle, even at times of low pricing.
The interim dividend of A$0.01 equates to a dividend yield of 6% at Jupiter’s current share price and contributes to the A$391-million in dividends distributed to shareholders since the company’s listing in April 2018.
Jupiter is headquartered in Perth, with its core asset being a 49.9% stake in Tshipi.
Tshipi is one of the world’s largest and lowest-cost manganese export operations and has been in production since 2012.