Severstal will not pay dividends for 2022

Meeting of shareholders “Severstal”, one of the largest metallurgical companies in the country, decided not to pay dividends for 2022. About this says in the company’s message published on the website of the corporate information disclosure center.

“The profit of PJSC Severstal according to the results of 2022 should not be distributed, dividends should not be paid,” the message says.

In April, the company’s board of directors recommended that shareholders not pay dividends. Experts interviewed by Vedomosti notedthat the decision of the board of directors was expected, as the uncertainty of the business grows, the decrease in marginality occurs against the backdrop of rising costs. The company previously admitted that they could return to the issue of dividend payments if the economic situation meets the expectations of management.

The last time Severstal paid annual dividends for 2020 was 30.4 billion rubles. At the end of 2021, the company did not pay dividends, making only interim payments for the first quarter, six months and nine months. According to experts, investors should wait for payments only in 2024. Since the beginning of the special operation, Severstal has not published IFRS statements, disclosing only operating results.

Due to the sanctions, the steel industry has faced a lot of challenges. The European Union (EU) has imposed a ban on the import of certain types of steel products, in particular hot, cold and long products, as well as pipes. This was reflected in the dynamics of the financial performance of Severstal, whose sales were largely focused on European markets. The company itself and its main owner Alexei Mordashov, who also found himself under EU restrictions, fell under US sanctions. Because of this, Severstal completely stopped exporting steel products to the Union countries.