Shareholders of State Trading Organization approved a dividend payout of MVR 85 per share at the company’s annual general meeting, marking the highest dividend in the company’s recent history.

The proposal was passed with 99 percent of shareholders representing 952,358 shares at the meeting held on Saturday night.

A total of 263 shareholders attended the meeting, including 176 who participated in person and 87 by proxy.

The dividend is MVR 5 higher than the MVR 80 per share distributed last year. STO became a publicly traded company 25 years ago.

STO CEO and Managing Director Shimad Ibrahim said the company is aiming to increase revenue from new business ventures by more than five percent and raise net profit to MVR 1 billion by 2030. He added that, based on the company’s current growth trajectory, the target could be achieved earlier than planned.

STO Group recorded revenue of MVR 16.7 billion last year, while the STO alone generated MVR 15.5 billion in revenue.

The group posted profits of MVR 785 million, with STO reporting a profit of MVR 763 million.