Andrew Forrest’s $3bn dividend bonanza in two years

The billionaire Fortescue chairman will pour big sums into his Minderoo Foundation after another big payday.

The big dividend announcement will also mean huge amounts flow to his charitable Minderoo Foundation. Picture: Tricia Watkinson

Andrew Forrest has made more than $3.2bn in dividends in less than two years after another big payday from his Fortescue Metals.

The iron ore giant announced a $1 per share final dividend on Monday, which will see Mr Forrest and his family receive about $1.16bn when the dividend is paid on October 2.

Fortescue reported a record annual profit and raised its dividend after shipping more iron ore than ever before as prices of the commodity headed towards a more than six-year high. The company’s net profit soared 49 per cent to $US4.73bn ($6.5bn), exceeding analyst forecasts. Revenue reached $US12.8bn ($17.9bn) as iron ore shipments increased 6 per cent to 178.2 million tonnes for the year.

Mr Forrest owns about 36 per cent of Fortescue, which he chairs, and the big dividend announcement will also mean huge amounts flow to his charitable Minderoo Foundation.

“It is incumbent upon us to help where we can,” Mr Forrest said when announcing he and wife Nicola were pouring $520m into the foundation earlier this year after they received about $830m from Fortescue’s interim dividend.

The duo have donated more than $2bn to the foundation, one of the largest of its type in Australia, and will push towards the $3bn mark following their latest dividend payment.

The foundation spent $75.2m on projects and partnerships in 2019 and had ramped up its spending after bushfires hit many regions of Australia earlier this year. At the time, Mr Forrest pledged $70m for bushfire causes, including $20m for more immediate measures.

It also negotiated the ­procuring of 10 million COVID-19 test kits from China in late April, announced to much fanfare by Health Minister Greg Hunt. Minderoo set aside $320m for the measure.

The foundation’s spending meant Mr Forrest was the biggest donor among the country’s wealthiest people on The List — Australia’s Richest 250.

Its other pursuits include ending slavery around the world, cutting plastic waste, ending childhood cancer deaths, dealing with artificial intelligence and the global technology giants, and closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.

Mr Forrest has received more than $3bn in the past two years in Fortescue dividends after he was paid about $1.24bn in three tranches over the 2019 financial year.

The fully franked final dividend of $1 per share announced on Monday lifted total dividends in 2020 to $1.76 per share including the interim dividend, which Fortescue said equated to about $US3.7bn and a 77 per cent payout of full year net profit after tax.

Mr Forrest‘s shareholding in Fortescue has breached the $20bn mark in recent weeks and put him on track for top position on The List, published by The Australian.

His shares are worth more than $20.77bn alone, and Mr Forrest also has hundreds of millions of assets including cattle and food production holdings and property in his home town of Perth and the eastern states.

Fortescue shares approached record highs on Monday, surging as China’s appetite for iron ore continues to rise and prices for the commodity stay high during the during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The value of Mr Forrest’s shares has increased by more than $11.4bn since the sharemarket hit its low in mid-March.

Fortescue has kept producing and its shares have kept rising since, making it one of the best performers on the ASX200 this year.