Russia’s summer dividend season is approaching and for those investors brave enough to remain in Russian stocks, the best paying dividend stocks have also proven the most crisis-resistant in recent years.

Every year in April-June, Russian corporates recommend, approve, and pay annual and interim dividends. Currently Russian companies pay the most generous dividends in the world, with a dividend yield of about 6%, or double the benchmark MSCI EM average.

Aton is predicting the highest dividend yields paid out in the next three months will include the following companies: Enel Russia (9.3%), Rostelecom (commons, 8.0% and prefs 8.6%), Federal Grid (7.2%), Globaltrans (6.5%), Aeroflot (6.4%), ALROSA (5.8%) and Gazprom (5.7%).

The list of high dividend payers is constantly growing and Aton suggests several other companies that have not announced their dividend payouts yet but should pay out in the next three months should be worth a punt.

“Among speculative dividend ideas – by no means guaranteed – we turn investors’ attention to the Bashneft pref, which may return a 4-23% dividend yield depending on its payout ratio (25-50% from IFRS) and net income base, and Mechel’s pref (11.5%) assuming state-owned banks give their approval. The caveat is that both stocks will collapse in minutes if investors are disappointed,” Aton said in a note.

When it goes wrong it goes very wrong. Raspadskaya coal mine stocks lost 10% in a day after the company’s board of directors voted against dividends in April. The coal sector has been booming as prices rose and investors were expecting the company to reward them with a healthy dividend.

Amongst the highest paying dividends expected to pay out over the next 12 months the majority pay on a quarterly or semi-annual basis.

“Globaltrans leads the list of our high-conviction top dividend stories with over 12% annual dividend yield, which the company pays twice a year. Metals and mining stocks also feature in terms of appealing offerings from 8% (Norilsk Nickel) to 11% (Severstal) annual yield. The other dividend segment is state-owned enterprises (Rostelecom, Aeroflot, Federal Grid, Gazprom, ALROSA), which traditionally pay dividends once a year,” Aton said in a note.

 

Russian dividends	Currency	Current price	Mcap, USD mn	Next Div	Next DY, %	Div next 12 months	Dividend yield	Probability
Sberbank	RUB	251,6	94 566	12	4,8%	12	4,8%	High
Sberbank pref	RUB	212,1	3 701	12	5,7%	12	5,7%	High
TCS Group	USD	22	3 991	0,345	1,6%	1,38	6,3%	High
VTB	RUB	0,052	11 759	0,0029	5,7%	0,0029	5,7%	High
Bank St.-Petersburg	RUB	54,2	466	1,3	2,4%	1,3	2,4%	High
Moscow Exchange	RUB	117	4 606	5,47	4,7%	8,14	7,0%	Approved
Qiwi	RUB	18,6	1 132	0,21	1,1%	0,84	4,5%	Medium
Aeroflot	RUB	156,3	2 993	10	6,4%	10	6,4%	High
Globaltrans	USD	12,1	2 148	0,78	6,5%	1,54	12,7%	Approved
Etalon Group	USD	3,00	868	0,17	5,7%	0,17	5,7%	Medium
LSR	RUB	872,5	1 586	50	5,7%	50	5,7%	Low
PIK Group	RUB	314	3 575	23	7,3%	23	7,3%	High
Detskiy Mir	RUB	96,1	1 228	3,88	4,0%	6,85	7,1%	High
X5 Retail Group	USD	33,6	9 119	1,38	4,1%	1,38	4,1%	High
RosAgro	USD	10,4	1 396	0,29	2,8%	0,52	5,0%	Medium
MTS	RUB	295,8	10 250	14,6	4,9%	26	8,8%	High
VEON	USD	2,7	4 708	0,11	4,1%	0,28	10,4%	Medium
Rostelecom	RUB	67,6	3 021	5,39	8,0%	5,39	8,0%	High
Rostelecom, pref	RUB	62,9	229	5,39	8,6%	5,39	8,6%	High
Sistema	RUB	11,8	1 917	0,4	3,4%	1,2	10,2%	Low
NLMK	RUB	144,3	14 962	3,4	2,3%	13,2	9,2%	High
Severstal	RUB	874,1	12 602	27,7	3,2%	93,5	10,7%	High
MMK	RUB	44,3	8 582	0,8	1,8%	4,1	9,3%	High
Evraz	GBp	427,3	8 694	$0,3	1,2%	$0,545	9,1%	Medium
TMK	RUB	82,4	1 453	0,8	1,0%	2,1	2,5%	Medium
Nornickel	RUB	10 830	29 496	560	5,2%	865,7	8,0%	High
Rusal	RUB	34,2	8 965	$0,007	1,3%	$0,028	4,7%	Low
En+	RUB	704,5	6 962	$0,400	2,8%	$0,874	7,0%	Low
Polymetal	GBp	588	4 421	$0,300	2,9%	$0,496	4,8%	High
Polyus Gold	RUB	4514	10 392	130	2,9%	254,9	5,6%	High
ALROSA	RUB	89,6	11 465	5,2	5,8%	5,9	6,6%	High
Phosagro	RUB	2326	5 219	15	0,60%	142	13,20%	High
Acron	RUB	4150	2 905	70	1,70%	294	7,10%	High
Rosneft	RUB	313,3	58 030	6,64	2,1%	10,47	3,3%	High
LUKOIL	RUB	3951	58 311	130	3,3%	215	5,4%	High
Surgutneftegas	RUB	28,3	17 528	0,6	2,1%	0,6	2,1%	High
Surgutneftegas pref	RUB	29	3 892	1,38	4,8%	1,38	4,8%	Medium
Tatneft	RUB	605	23 872	2,22	0,4%	30	5,0%	Medium
Tatneft pref	RUB	420,2	23 872	2,22	0,5%	30	7,1%	Medium
Gazprom Neft	RUB	298,9	24 697	3,4	1,1%	13,4	4,5%	High
Gazprom	RUB	141,1	57 663	8,04	5,7%	8,04	5,7%	High
Novatek	RUB	741	39 183	8	1,1%	14,95	2,0%	Approved
Bashneft	RUB	2200	6 574	200	9,1%	200	9,1%	Low
Bashneft, pref	RUB	1737	6 574	200	11,5%	200	11,5%	Low
Transneft pref	RUB	179000	4 831	7499	4,2%	7499	4,2%	Medium
RusHydro	RUB	0,8	5 593	0,042	5,5%	0,042	5,5%	High
Inter RAO	RUB	3,9	6 994	0,13038	3,4%	0,13038	3,4%	Approved
Unipro	RUB	2,9	3 148	0,11	3,8%	0,22	7,6%	Approved
Enel Russia	RUB	1,5	925	0,14	9,3%	0,14	9,3%	High
Federal Grid Company	RUB	0,2	4 015	0,013	7,2%	0,015	8,3%	High
MOESK	RUB	0,8	650	0,055	7,2%	0,055	7,2%	Medium
Lenenergo	RUB	5,9	1 044	0,55	9,3%	0,55	9,3%	Medium
Lenenergo pref	RUB	101,9	1 044	13,47	13,2%	13,47	13,2%	High
MRSK Centre	RUB	0,4	266	0,02	5,4%	0,02	5,4%	Medium
MRSK Centre and Volga	RUB	0,3	645	0,04	12,2%	0,04	12,2%	Medium
MRSK Volga	RUB	0,1	383	0,012	10,5%	0,012	10,5%	Medium
MRSK Siberia	RUB	0,1	194	0,004	3,2%	0,004	3,2%	Medium
MRSK South	RUB	0,1	48	0,005	9,1%	0,005	9,1%	Medium
MRSK Urals	RUB	0,2	333	0,02	9,3%	0,02	9,3%	Medium
Tomsk Distribution Co	RUB	0,3	23	0,021	6,2%	0,021	6,2%	Low
Tomsk Distribution Co pref	RUB	0,4	4	0,017	4,8%	0,017	4,8%	Medium
Kubanenergo	RUB	70,6	346	0,928	1,3%	0,928	1,3%	Low
Source: Bloomberg, ATON Research