Western Bus Station Joint Stock Company is about to pay 144% cash dividend

After many consecutive years of paying 20% dividends, Mien Tay Bus Station Joint Stock Company has just announced an interim dividend for 2023 of up to 144% (ie each share receives 14,400 VND) thanks to positive business growth results.

Western Bus Station Joint Stock Company (stock code: WCS) has just announced the closing of the list of shareholders to receive 2023 interim cash dividends at a rate of 144%, equivalent to VND 14,400 per share.

In the announcement released on the afternoon of February 29, the company said the last registration date to receive the interim dividend is March 15 and the payment date is March 28. With 2.5 million shares in circulation, it is estimated that Mien Tay Bus Station will spend VND36 billion to pay interim dividends to shareholders.

The dividend rate just announced far exceeds the plan approved by the annual general meeting of shareholders last year. At that time, the Board of Directors said that the dividend rate for 2023 would be based on the company's actual business results and not lower than 20%.

As of January 23, Mien Tay Bus Station has 3 major shareholders: Saigon Transport Mechanical Corporation with 51% ownership, followed by America LLC with 23.08% ownership and Thai Binh Investment Joint Stock Company with 10%. Based on the provisional dividend, Saigon Transport Mechanical Corporation will receive more than 18 billion VND, America LLC will receive more than 8 billion VND and Thai Binh Investment will receive about 3.6 billion VND.

144% cash dividend is the highest level in the past 3 years of Mien Tay Bus Station. The company paid 20% dividend per year during the Covid-19 period, while before that, the dividend rate was usually over 200% per year. The peak in 2018 was 400% and in 2019 was 516%.

The dividend rate was set after the company announced positive business results for 2023. Specifically, Mien Tay Bus Station earned VND140 billion, up 49% over the previous year. This is the highest level since the company listed on the stock exchange in 2010. The company reported pre-tax profit of VND83 billion and post-tax profit of VND66.4 billion, up 73% over the previous year. The above targets far exceeded the company's target set at the beginning of the year. At the beginning of the year, the board of directors expected to serve 8.78 million passengers to record revenue of VND120 billion, pre-tax profit of VND56 billion and post-tax profit of VND44.8 billion.

In the last quarter of 2023 alone, the company recorded net revenue of VND 34.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023, an increase of 20% over the same period last year. After deducting the cost of goods sold, the company's gross profit was VND 21.6 billion, equivalent to a gross profit margin of up to 62%. Business management costs nearly doubled compared to the same period last year, so after-tax profit was only VND 15 billion, 12.6% higher than the same period.

According to the company's management, the business results in the last quarter of the year grew by double digits because the company applied the collection of service fees for vehicles entering and leaving the station according to the schedule approved by the route management agency. At the same time, the authorities banned sleeper buses from entering the inner city area, so transport businesses brought their vehicles into the station to operate.

By the end of the year, the company had total assets of more than VND284 billion, an increase of VND67 billion compared to the beginning of the year. Cash and short-term deposits at banks accounted for an overwhelming proportion of the company's asset structure with nearly 86%, equivalent to VND244 billion. The company had liabilities of more than VND81 billion, about 3 times higher than at the beginning of the year when short-term payables increased dramatically.

WCS shares are currently at VND193,100, up significantly from the VND180,000 price range at the beginning of the year. The company's market capitalization at this price is VND482 billion.

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