UAE's Amanat Approves $10m Dividend, Share Buyback Plan

Amanat Holdings, the GCC’s largest healthcare and education investment company, has announced that it has approved a cash dividend distribution of AED37.5 million ($10.2 million) for 2018.

The 1.50 percent dividend to shareholders is the fourth year in a row that a dividend has been approved, the company said.

Amanat's general assembly meeting also approved the board’s decision to execute a 10 percent buyback of Amanat’s issued share capital. This approval is subject to regulatory approvals.

Hamad Abdulla Al Shamsi, chairman of Amanat, said: “We are delighted to be paying our fourth consecutive dividend, reflecting our commitment to delivering shareholder returns. What's more, our achievements in 2018 represent considerable progress for Amanat and underpin our ongoing commitment to create significant value for shareholders."

To date, the company said it has now deployed 79 percent (AED2 billion) of its AED2.5 billion paid-up share capital.

He added: "We look forward to the coming year as we seek to create significant shareholder value from our existing assets, as we continue to identify further complementary opportunities in our chosen markets.”

Dr Shamsheer Vayalil, vice chairman and managing director of Amanat, said: “We have successfully realized the goals we set for 2018. These achievements are clearly reflected in numbers with over AED1.2 billion deployed during 2018. Going forward, we intend to drive operational improvement at our portfolio companies, explore add-on acquisitions to strengthen Amanat’s platforms and raise debt for further investments."