Daily Brief ESG: Cash on Hand Has Built up to a Level Where Small Shareholder Returns Are No Longer Sufficient and more

• The increase in net profit from the previous year outpaced the growth in dividends, which increased cash on hand for listed companies to a record high level. 
• Since the equity ratio of manufacturing sector is over 40% and there’s little room for debt repayment, there’s room for a considerable increase in dividends in conjunction with share repurchases.
• If free cash flow isn’t used to invest in growth and return profits to shareholders, rather than to pay small dividends to shareholders, cash on hand will continue to increase.

Lucror Analytics’ ESG Scores are based on a 3-tiered scale and are adjusted for Controversies (if applicable).
We assess AMS Osram’s ESG as “Strong”, in line with its Social and Governance scores. The Environmental score is “Adequate”. Controversies are “Immaterial” and Disclosure is “Strong”.