Saudi Arabia topped regional dividend payouts, while listed companies in the UAE paid out $1.7 billion during the first quarter.
Dubai: Companies across the Middle East paid $29.2 billion in dividends during Q1 2026, led by Saudi Arabia, which accounted for almost 84% of the region’s total payouts.
Underlying dividend payouts in the region climbed 4% year-on-year, according to the inaugural Janus Henderson Global Dividend and Buyback Index.
Headline dividend payouts in the Middle East declined 5% year-on-year, largely due to changes in payment schedules rather than weaker underlying distributions.
Saudi Arabia remained the region’s largest dividend market, with companies distributing an estimated $24.5 billion during the quarter. Qatar ranked second with $2 billion in payouts, followed by the UAE at $1.7 billion.
Headline dividend payments in the UAE declined from a year earlier, primarily due to the timing of Dubai Islamic Bank’s dividend distribution, the report said.
Global dividends reach $424.5 billion
Global dividend payouts rose 10.1% year-on-year to $424.5 billion in the first quarter, driven by stronger distributions across North America, Europe, Japan and the UK.
The growth came despite a challenging macroeconomic backdrop marked by elevated interest rates, trade uncertainty and geopolitical tensions.
Meanwhile, global share buybacks totalled $425.7 billion during the quarter, remaining marginally higher than dividend payouts despite declining 3.1% from the same period in 2025.
The figures highlight differing approaches to returning excess capital to shareholders. While dividend payouts continued to rise, companies adopted a more cautious stance on share repurchases.
“Amid what feels like an increasingly uncertain macroeconomic backdrop, the surprise has been the strength of earnings around the world,” said Jane Shoemake, Client Portfolio Manager on the Global Equity Income Team at Janus Henderson. “Those earnings almost always translate into higher dividends, and that’s exactly what we’re now seeing across a range of industries and regions.”
US leads global shareholder returns
The US remained the world’s largest market for shareholder distributions, with companies paying $183.5 billion in dividends and repurchasing $266.7 billion worth of shares during the first quarter.
US companies accounted for 46.3% of total dividend payments tracked by the index, with technology, financial and energy firms among the biggest contributors.
Excluding the UK, European companies distributed $67.4 billion in dividends during the first quarter, up 35.5% from a year earlier. The increase was supported by currency movements and the timing of dividend payments.
Switzerland was Europe’s largest dividend payer, distributing $27.3 billion, followed by Denmark with $9.4 billion.
Financial sector leads shareholder payouts
Financial companies remained the biggest source of shareholder returns globally during the quarter, leading both dividend distributions and share buybacks.
Financial companies distributed $90.8 billion in dividends and repurchased $110.7 billion worth of shares during the quarter, accounting for more than one-third of global share buybacks.
Basic materials companies posted the strongest dividend growth of any sector, with payouts rising 47.1% year-on-year. The increase was driven by robust demand for critical minerals such as copper and lithium, which are essential for data centres, semiconductors and artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Technology companies also remained major contributors to shareholder returns, paying $43.7 billion in dividends while completing $66.6 billion in share buybacks during the quarter.
Dividends expected to grow further
Janus Henderson expects global dividend payments to increase by 8.3% in 2026, accelerating from 6.8% growth recorded in 2025.
Global share buybacks, however, are forecast to decline 1.1% this year after rising 6.1% in 2025.
The report said resilient corporate earnings continue to underpin the dividend outlook, although elevated interest rates, geopolitical tensions and pressure on consumer-facing sectors remain key risks.
“Buybacks add another layer to the story. The absolute level of repurchases remains substantial, broadly in line with dividends in Q1, but the modest year-on-year decline also shows why they should be treated differently,” Shoemake said.
“Dividends are typically long-term decisions made by boards based on sustainability, while buybacks are more discretionary and cyclical. In this sense, dividends remain a stronger indicator of corporate confidence, whereas buybacks serve as a more flexible tool for managing changing market conditions.”
