MSCI includes Yahsat in its global indices

Al Yah Satellite Communications Company, popularly known as Yahsat — the UAE’s flagship satellite solutions provider, on Sunday announced that it has been included as a constituent of the MSCI Small Cap Indices, including the MSCI All Country World Index (ACWI) Small Cap Index, MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap Index, and the MSCI UAE Small Cap Index after fulfilling the necessary listing requirements.

Yahsat’s inclusion will be effective on December 1, 2021 and reflects the growing confidence by global financial institutions in the company’s strong financial performance and its ability to deliver among the highest dividend yields to its growing shareholder base on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). It will also encourage local and international retail and institutional investors to make long-term investments in listed on the Abu Dhabi-listed Yahsat.

“Yahsat’s inclusion in three MSCI indices serves as a testament to the group’s position as a local industrial champion and a key contributor to the development and diversification of the UAE economy. This development is expected to further strengthen Abu Dhabi’s position as an attractive destination for investors,” Ali Al Hashemi, group chief executive officer at Yahsat, said.

Yahsat recently announced its third-quarter financial results, reporting revenues of Dh1 billion for the first nine months of the year, demonstrating a strong and sustained performance since first quarter of 2021. Normalised net income of Dh200.1 million exceeded prior year by Dh61.4 million or 44.3 per cent for the nine-month period.

This robust performance has led the board to endorse management’s recommendation to update the group’s current dividend policy, allowing it to distribute dividends on a semi-annual basis going forward, subject to shareholder approval. Investors can expect to receive a dividend of around 16 fils per share during 2022. The dividend is expected to grow by at least two per cent per year.

“This achievement is a reflection of Yahsat’s proven operational and financial strength and underpins our ongoing commitment to generating shareholder value by investing in next-generation technologies and expanding our geographical footprint. This is an important milestone that will allow us to further diversify our investor base and pave the way for increased recognition internationally,” Al Hashemi concluded.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com