Saudi Arabia: Banque Saudi Fransi has confirmed its board’s recommendation to issue SR1 billion ($271 million) worth of dividends for the second half of 2021, four times last year’s annual one-time payout of SR0.40.

Every shareholder will receive a dividend of SR0.85 per share, representing 8.5 percent of the bank’s capital, with a total of 1.2 billion eligible shares.

The distribution date is yet to be disclosed, according to a bourse filing.

For the first half of 2021, BSF paid out SR0.65 dividend per share, producing a total net dividend payout of SR1.5 for the entire fiscal year, 275 percent higher than that of 2020.

The higher payout will take the dividend yield up to 3.33 percent based on a share price of SR45.

Historically, the stock has consistently increased its dividends year-on-year since 2016 until coronavirus hit in 2020, resulting in a huge drop in dividends.

As coronavirus-induced economic drawbacks eased, BSF managed to boost its net income to SR2.45 billion in the first nine months of 2021, up 69.2 percent from a year earlier, and accordingly offer higher dividends.