| |
This section provides information about Dividends, including Policy, History and the Dividend Reinvestment
Plan (DRP).
Dividend Policy
The company does not have a stated policy of distributing a fixed percentage of
earnings by way of dividend in any year. Rather, in fixing a dividend for any
year it considers a number of factors including forecast earnings, internal
capital requirements, growth options, availability of tax credits and the
company's debt equity position. The company aspires to ensuring a dividend
record that means the dividend is never reduced, and where circumstances permit
increasing the dividend.
Dividends paid by the company have Dividend Withholding
Payment (DWP) credits attached whenever these are
available, so that both New Zealand and non-resident
shareholders can benefit from the value of New Zealand's
dividend imputation tax credit regime. New Zealand
imputation credits are also attached to ensure the
dividend is fully tax credited for New Zealand purposes.
Fletcher Building pays the refund of the DWP tax credit
to non-resident shareholders at the same time as the
dividend is paid, and then recovers this from the
Inland Revenue Department. New Zealand resident shareholders
holding shares on behalf of, or as agents for, non-residents
need to advise the share registry, before the relevant
record date, to ensure that the DWP tax credit refund
is made.
For the interim dividend payable in April 2006 the
company is also able to allocate Australian franking
credits to the dividend which arise from tax paid
in Australia. These credits are required to be allocated
to all shareholders but are only of value to those
shareholders resident in Australia for tax purposes.
The company expects this policy of attaching Australian
franking credits to apply in future years.
Notwithstanding the dividend guideline above, the Fletcher Building board has a
discretion to change its intentions and to increase or reduce dividends.
Fletcher Building can give no assurance about the level of dividends, if any,
or the level of taxation credits attached to the dividends. These levels will
depend on a number of factors.
|
|
