Owners of Telstra Group Ltd (ASX: TLS) shares can rejoice because the latest payout has just been announced. The Telstra dividend was bigger than many analysts expected.
The ASX telco share revealed positive numbers across the board.
Total income rose 0.2% to $11.8 billion, operating expenses declined 2.1% to $7.4 billion, operating profit (EBIT) grew 92% to $2 billion, net profit for Telstra share owners increased 9.4% to $1.12 billion, earnings per share (EPS) increased 11.2% to 9.9 cents and cash EPS rose 19.7% to 14 cents.
Thanks to that sizeable profit increase, the business was able to deliver a larger payout.
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Telstra dividend
On the back of the cash earnings growth, the board of directors declared an interim dividend per Telstra share of 10.5 cents, which will be 90.48% franked. This represents a year-over-year increase of 10.5%, though the FY25 half-year dividend was fully (100%) franked.
Telstra said in its report that it aims to deliver a sustainable and growing dividend. It reminded investors that its 'connected future 30' ambition remains to deliver mid-single digit growth in cash earnings.
The business also announced an increase to its on-market share buyback from up to $1 billion, to up to $1.25 billion in FY26. It has used $637 million during the half-year period on the back of its earnings growth and the strength of the balance sheet.
The share buyback will support EPS and the dividend per share.
This increased share buyback and the larger dividend reflect the board and management's confidence in the financial strength and outlook. The announced payment represents a dividend payout ratio of 75% of its cash EPS.
Important dates for the payout
Owners of Telstra shares are probably wondering when the dividend will hit their bank accounts.
The ASX telco share has announced that it will be paid on 27 March 2026, just over a month to wait.
If investors want to have entitlement to this payout, then they need to own Telstra shares on the ex-dividend date. That's essentially the cutoff date. Investors need to buy shares before this date to receive the payout from the Australian telco giant.
The ex-dividend date for this payment is 25 February 2026, therefore interested investors will need to buy shares before the end of ASX trading on 24 February 2026.
Instead of receiving a cash dividend, investors can receive new Telstra shares by deciding to take part in the dividend re-investment plan (DRP). If investors do want to take part in the DRP, the election date for the DRP is 27 February 2026, which is just over a week away.
