Shareholders support strategy – 99.8 percent for investments instead of dividends
Montabaur, 23 May 2019. The shareholders of United Internet AG support the strategy of the company with great majority. At today's Annual General Meeting of United Internet in Frankfurt, 99.8 percent of the votes cast approved the proposal of the Management Board and Supervisory Board to pay only a dividend of EUR 0.05 per share for the 2018 financial year. The dividend is based on the minimum dividend provided for in Section 254 (1) AktG. This precautionary measure is intended to ensure that the necessary additional investments can be made if subsidiary 1&1 Drillisch should successfully bid for frequencies until the completion of the current 5G frequency auction. Based on 200.3 million dividend-bearing shares (as of December 31, 2018), this results in a total dividend payout of EUR 10.0 million for financial year 2018 (FY 2017: EUR 169.9 million).
"The clear result of the vote on our dividend proposal is an explicit commitment to building a modern 5G mobile network," commented Ralph Dommermuth, CEO of United Internet AG. "I am pleased that our shareholders support the strategy so clearly. The goal is to create more value in the long term through the transformation to the fourth network operator – for our shareholders, customers and employees."
Last Tuesday (21 May), the shareholders of 1&1 Drillisch AG voted by an overwhelming majority to pay out only a minimum dividend – based on Section 254 (1) AktG – of EUR 0.05 per share for the 2018 financial year and thus to leave almost the entire profit in the company so that 1&1 Drillisch can invest in a modern 5G network.