Phoenix Tours International Inc (鳳凰國際旅行社) has listened to its shareholders and yesterday raised its cash dividend from NT$2 per share to NT$3 per share, the same as last year’s.
The dividend was distributed after the company’s net profit grew 28.92 percent last year from the previous year to NT$229.44 million (US$7.65 million), or NT$3.83 per share.
With the company’s shares climbing 1.32 percent to close at NT$61.2 yesterday, the dividend yield was 4.9 percent.
“The company had thought to retain more earnings for further investment in China, following the signing of cross-strait Services Trade Agreement,” chairman Jimmy Chang (張金明) said at the company’s annual general meeting.
However, the firm may not be able to carry out its investment plan as soon as it had expected, because Beijing does not appear willing to allow the subsidiaries of Taiwanese travel agencies in China to provide tourism services to Taiwan and other countries under the current negotiations, Chang said. That is the segment with the highest economic benefits, he said.
That meant the company was able to distribute more in cash dividends to shareholders, he said.
Phoenix Tours’ consolidated revenue in the first five months maintained a steady growth, up 13.86 percent from a year earlier to NT$1.13 billion, he said.
However, Chang kept a relatively conservative attitude toward the business outlook in the third quarter — the traditional peak period for the tourism sector — citing strong competition among travel agencies.
“We have seen competition become more fierce this month,” Chang said.
Against this backdrop, Phoenix Tours’ sales and profit for next quarter are expected to stay flat from a year earlier, supported by the US travel group business, which still see strong momentum following the launch of the US Visa Waiver Program in October last year, Chang said.
Phoenix Tours is the only travel agency listed on Taiwan’s main bourse.
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