The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) board pleased passive income investors last week with a boosted CBA dividend.
Following strong half-year results (1H FY 2025), the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) bank stock will pay eligible shareholders a fully franked interim dividend of $2.25 a share.
That's up 4.6% from the $2.15 per share interim dividend CBA paid out last year.
This brings (or will shortly bring) the bank's passive income payouts over the last 12 months to $4.75 a share.
At the current CBA share price of $164.07 (up around 40% in a year), the big four bank trades on a fully franked dividend yield of 2.9%.
The interim dividend alone represents a current yield of 1.4%, with potential tax benefits from those franking credits.
But if you're hoping to score this latest payout, you better act fast.
CommBank stock trades ex-dividend this Wednesday, 19 February. That means you'll need to own shares at market close on Tuesday to be eligible to receive that passive income.
The increased interim CBA dividend was enabled in part by a 3% year-on-year increase in half-year operating income, which came in at $14.1 billion. And CommBank's cash net profit after tax was up 2% to $5.13 billion.
Commenting on the results, CBA CEO Matt Comyn said:
We aim to provide strength and stability through economic cycles, while maintaining the capacity to deal with macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainties. Millions of Australians continue to benefit from our focus on strong and sustainable returns, and we have declared an interim dividend of $2.25 per share, fully franked.
CommBank noted its latest passive income payout represents a half-year payout ratio of around 75% on a normalised basis. This reflects the bank's goal to pay strong and sustainable fully franked dividends.
CBA said it continues to target a full-year payout ratio of 70% to 80% of cash net profit after tax.
If you prefer to reinvest the upcoming payout rather than bank it, CommBank's dividend reinvestment plan (DRP) is active. Management expects that to be satisfied through the on-market purchase of shares
The interim CBA dividend will be paid on 28 March.
Looking to what could impact the CBA dividend payouts ahead, Comyn noted that despite a slowing Aussie economy and significant cost of living pressures, moderating inflation should lead to lower interest rates in 2025.
"This should provide some relief to many households and improve business confidence," he said. "The strong labour market and level of ongoing public sector infrastructure spend also provide cause for optimism on the domestic economic outlook."
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