Heidelberg Materials Annual General Meeting resolves increased dividend

• Annual General Meeting approves all agenda items
• Shareholders approve dividend of €3.00 per share (previous year: €2.60)
• Chairman of the Managing Board Dr Dominik von Achten confirms significant progress in decarbonisation
• Managing Board and Supervisory Board discharged by a convincing majority 
• Gunnar Groebler, Chief Executive Officer of Salzgitter AG, newly elected to the Supervisory Board
• Dr Bernd Scheifele re-elected as Chairman of the Supervisory Board

Heidelberg Materials AG held its 135th Annual General Meeting today. Around 280 participants informed themselves about the company's business development during the virtual meeting. The shareholders approved all agenda items with a large majority.

For the 2023 financial year, shareholders will receive a dividend of €3.00 per share (previous year: €2.60), an increase of 15%. Total distribution amounts to around €546 million. The dividend will be paid on 22 May 2024. With a dividend yield of 3.7%, Heidelberg Materials is part of the DivDAX and thus one of the 15 stock-listed companies with the highest dividend yields in the DAX 40. The payout ratio is 28% and relates to the adjusted profit for the financial year attributable to Heidelberg Materials AG shareholders. Together with the previously announced new share buyback programme with a volume of up to €1.2 billion until 2026, the increase in the dividend underlines the strong focus on shareholder return.

Dr Dominik von Achten, Chairman of the Managing Board, was very pleased with the course of the past financial year: “In the 150th year of our company’s history, we at Heidelberg Materials have once again shown that we can deal with major changes. I am proud of our teams around the world, who have substantially advanced the decarbonisation of our company in a challenging year and at the same time achieved an outstanding financial performance. With another significant increase in the dividend, we are making sure our shareholders participate in the company’s success.”

In his presentation, Dr Dominik von Achten outlined the significant progress that the Group demonstrates already today as a pioneer in the decarbonisation of the building materials industry. In addition to the imminent mechanical completion of the world’s first industrial-scale carbon capture facility at a cement plant in Norway, he presented numerous other milestones for reducing CO₂ emissions that are currently being implemented.

The Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Dr Bernd Scheifele, the Chairman of the Managing Board, Dr Dominik von Achten, and the Chief Financial Officer, René Aldach, answered more than 120 questions. Subsequently, the Annual General Meeting expressed its confidence in the members of the Supervisory Board and Managing Board for the financial year 2023 with a convincing majority and discharged them.

As the term of office of all Supervisory Board members expired at the end of the Annual General Meeting on 16 May 2024, regular elections were held. Five of the six elected shareholder representatives on the Supervisory Board had already been members of the Board. Prof. Dr Marion Weissenberger-Eibl was no longer available for re-election to the Supervisory Board. Gunnar Groebler, Chief Executive Officer of Salzgitter AG, was newly elected to the Supervisory Board. He brings many years of extensive experience in the energy and steel industries. Following the Annual General Meeting, the members of the Supervisory Board re-elected Dr Bernd Scheifele as their Chairman.

“I would like to thank the shareholders and the members of the Supervisory Board of Heidelberg Materials AG for the trust they have placed in me,” said Dr Bernd Scheifele, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Heidelberg Materials. “I am particularly pleased to welcome Mr Gunnar Groebler to the Supervisory Board. He is an experienced expert with a profound understanding of the transformation of energy-intensive industries who will contribute his valuable expertise in this area in an advisory capacity.”

At the time of the voting, around 80% of the company’s subscribed share capital was represented.

You can find the detailed voting results on our website.

Caption

Heidelberg Materials today streamed its 135th Annual General Meeting virtually from its headquarters in Heidelberg. Copyright: Philipp Reimer

• About Heidelberg Materials
• Heidelberg Materials is one of the world's largest integrated manufacturers of building materials and solutions with leading market positions in cement, aggregates, and ready-mixed concrete. We are represented in around 50 countries with around 51,000 employees at almost 3,000 locations. At the centre of our actions lies the responsibility for the environment. As the front runner on the path to carbon neutrality and circular economy in the building materials industry, we are working on sustainable building materials and solutions for the future. We enable new opportunities for our customers through digitalisation.