On the evening of the 14th, Jilin Expressway announced that it received the "Regulatory Inquiry Letter on the Profit Distribution Plan of Jilin Expressway Co., Ltd." issued by the Shanghai Stock Exchange on the 14th.
Jilin Expressway said in the announcement that it will reply to the inquiry letter according to the requirements of the Shanghai Stock Exchange and fulfill its information disclosure obligations in a timely manner.
According to the inquiry letter, from 2019 to 2023, the annual net profit attributable to shareholders of listed companies of Jilin Expressway will be 189 million yuan, 99 million yuan, 318 million yuan, 394 million yuan, and 546 million yuan respectively, making profits for five consecutive years and profit growth for three consecutive years, but the cash dividend ratio is only 0, 0, 10.18%, 0, 0, 0, and only a low proportion of dividends of 32.4095 million yuan in 2021. The company has been profitable for many years, but has not implemented cash dividends for many years. The company said that the retained undistributed profits will be used for the company's daily operation development, investment, debt repayment, etc.
As of the end of the reporting period, the asset-liability ratio of Jilin Expressway was 17.96%, declining for many years, the undistributed profit of the parent company at the end of the period was 2.635 billion yuan, increasing for many years, and the balance of monetary funds at the end of the period reached 1.513 billion yuan.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange requires Jilin Expressway to:
- Combined with the profitability and use of funds in recent years, it is supplemented to explain the reasons and reasonableness of the company's high balance of monetary funds and many years of profitability, and whether there is a large amount of idle funds;
- Specify in detail the specific plan for the use of the retained funds, including the specific working capital budget, debt repayment arrangements, specific directions of foreign investment, etc., and fully explain the necessity and urgency of the relevant capital arrangements;
- Explain whether the company facilitates the participation of small and medium-sized shareholders in the decision-making of cash dividends, and the practical and effective measures that the company intends to take to enhance the level of investor returns.
The inquiry letter also said that the announcement showed that Vice Chairman Liu Xianfu and independent director Lin Jianzhong abstained from voting on the company's 2023 profit distribution plan. The Shanghai Stock Exchange requires Jilin Expressway to explain the detailed reasons why Vice Chairman Liu Xianfu, independent director Lin Jianzhong abstained from voting and other directors voted in favor, whether the relevant directors have communication differences with the company, whether all directors independently and prudently judge the profit distribution plan, and ask all directors to express clear opinions on whether they are diligent and conscientious.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange stated in the inquiry letter that cash dividends are one of the most direct and effective ways for listed companies to return to investors. All directors, supervisors and senior executives of Jilin Expressway are requested to express their opinions on whether the cash dividend plan is reasonable, and prudently assess whether the cash dividend plan is in line with the company's long-term strategy, whether it is conducive to investors to share the company's development results, respond to the concerns of the market and investors in a timely manner on cash dividends, effectively protect the interests of small and medium-sized investors, and enhance the stability, sustainability and predictability of cash dividends.
It is understood that the announcement on the profit distribution plan for 2023 recently disclosed by Jilin Expressway said that the company's net profit attributable to the owners of the parent company in the consolidated statement in 2023 was about 546 million yuan, plus the undistributed profit at the beginning of the year was about 2.151 billion yuan, minus the withdrawal of statutory surplus reserve of about 47.419 million yuan, and the cumulative profit available for distribution at the end of the year was about 2.65 billion yuan. After deliberation and approval at the third meeting of the fourth board of directors of the company, the proposed profit distribution plan for 2023 is: no profit distribution, no cash dividends, no share gifts and capital reserve to increase share capital.
It is worth noting that according to the announcement of the resolution of the third meeting of the fourth board of directors of Jilin Expressway, director Liu Xianfu abstained from voting on the grounds that it is recommended that the company should consider the immediate cash return requirements of shareholders and formulate a cash dividend plan while meeting the long-term development capital needs; It is recommended that in 2023, in accordance with regulatory requirements and in combination with the actual situation of the company, an appropriate cash dividend plan will be formulated.
According to public information, Jilin Expressway is the only state-controlled listed company in Jilin Province engaged in the investment, operation and management of transportation infrastructure such as expressways and bridges, and its main business is the investment, development, construction and operation management of toll roads.