A total of 43 listed companies on the capital market have recommended dividends exclusively for general shareholders for the 2026 financial year, excluding their sponsors and directors from dividend payments.

Market insiders believe the decisions reflect both financial constraints and efforts by companies to maintain their existing market categories under the stock exchange listing regulations.

According to data from the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE), 170 listed companies have so far declared dividends for the 2026 financial year. Of them, 56 companies have recommended cash dividends of more than 10 per cent, while 28 have proposed dividends below 10 per cent. Seven companies have recommended both cash and stock dividends, while one company has proposed only a stock dividend.

Meanwhile, 34 companies have declared no dividends. Six of them have been downgraded to the Z category after failing to declare dividends for two consecutive years. These companies are Apex Tannery, Bangladesh Building Systems (BBS), Deshbandhu Polymer, Golden Son, Investment Corporation of Bangladesh (ICB) and Information Services Network (ISN).

The 43 companies recommending dividends exclusively for general shareholders represent sectors including textiles, pharmaceuticals, power, food and engineering. Their proposed dividend rates range from 0.10 per cent to 40.5 per cent.

Far Chemical, Kattali Textile, ML Dyeing, Master Feed, Monno Fabrics, Silva Pharma and VFS Thread Dyeing have each recommended a 0.10 per cent cash dividend. This means general shareholders will receive just one paisa against each share with a face value of Tk 10.

Among the 43 companies, Fine Foods has proposed the highest dividend of 40.5 per cent. Dorin Power and Paramount Textile have recommended 15 per cent each, while Tamijuddin Textile has proposed 13 per cent. Aman Feed and Craftsman Footwear have recommended dividends of 10.5 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively.

Among all listed companies, Meghna Petroleum has announced the highest dividend, recommending a 210 per cent cash dividend, equivalent to Tk 21 per share. Padma Oil has proposed the second-highest dividend of 170 per cent, or Tk 17 per share. Square Pharmaceuticals, Jamuna Oil and Eastern Lubricants have recommended dividends of 130 per cent, 120 per cent and 115 per cent, respectively.

A managing director of a brokerage firm said companies were not legally required to distribute dividends among all categories of shareholders. Taking advantage of this provision, financially weak companies were offering nominal dividends to general shareholders in an attempt to retain their existing market classification.

He said general investors were benefiting to some extent, but the extremely low dividend amounts raised questions about the intentions of sponsors and directors.

Under DSE listing regulations, a company must declare at least a 10 per cent dividend to retain its existing category. Companies offering less than 10 per cent are downgraded to the B category, while those failing to declare dividends for two consecutive years are transferred to the Z category.

The brokerage executive also noted that sponsors and directors were among those choosing not to receive dividends. In some cases, companies might retain cash within the business to meet operational and investment requirements.

However, an analyst at an asset management company cautioned that declaring a nominal dividend did not necessarily indicate an improvement in a company’s financial health. The more important consideration was whether the company could generate sufficient profits and cash flows to sustain its operations.

Market analysts said general shareholders could benefit from even small dividend payments, but investors should not make investment decisions based solely on dividend announcements. They should also consider a company’s earnings, cash flow, debt burden and future business prospects.

The dividend declarations highlight a significant disparity among listed companies, with some distributing as much as Tk 21 per share while others offering general shareholders just one paisa.