Some of the leading ASX dividend shares just implemented more dividend increases for shareholders.
Inflation is picking up, so there may be some investors looking for investments capable of growing their payouts at an inflation-beating rate.
Here are those two ASX dividend shares that just gave shareholders a pay rise:
Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Co. Ltd (ASX: SOL)
Soul Pattinson is an investment conglomerate that owns a diversified portfolio across a range of asset classes across different sectors, including private equity, private credit and property.
The company points to its unconstrained, flexible investment mandate that allows it to invest in and support companies from an early stage and grow with them over the long-term.
It has built a portfolio of assets that generate reliable cash flow through market cycles, providing protection during market declines.
The ASX dividend share just reported its half-year result, which included a 114% increase of net cash flow from investments to $182.6 million. Cash flow per share increased 42% year on year.
It increased its FY22 interim dividend by 11.5% to 29 cents per share. That was the 24th consecutive increase of the interim dividend. At the current Soul Pattinson share price, that means the grossed-up dividend yield is now 3.4%.
Brickworks Limited (ASX: BKW)
Brickworks is a diversified business. It owns 26.1% of Soul Pattinson, a 50% share of an industrial property trust and building products manufacturers in both Australia and the US.
The company just announced a 5% increase to its interim dividend to 22 cents per share. Brickworks' normal dividend has been maintained or increased every year since 1976. It is the ninth year in a row that it has increased dividends.
In the Brickworks half-year result, it announced that underlying net profit after tax (NPAT) was up by 269% to $330 million and statutory profit increased 720% to $581 million.
The contribution from the ASX dividend share's property division was a "standout", with strong demand for the prime industrial land driving a significant increase in the portfolio's value. The property trust value increased by $349 million. Net trust income increased 7% to $17 million, reflecting rent reviews and additional developments.
The state-of-the-art Amazon facility reached practical completion at the end of December 2021.
Brickworks also announced the intention to launch a new operational property trust to realise value from its Australian building products operational land. An initial portfolio of 15 properties with a gross asset value of around $415 million could go through a sale and leaseback process.
The Australian building products division managed to achieve higher profit margins thanks to improved production efficiencies and higher prices across most business units. This led to the earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rising by 66% to $27 million.
At the current Brickworks share price, it now has a grossed-up dividend yield of 3.9%.
