Norsk Hydro trades ex-dividend at NOK 2.25: Notes for investors on aluminium market sentiment

Officially going ex-dividend as of May 12, 2025, Norsk Hydro ASA has plans for a payout of NOK 2.25 per share for the financial year 2024. The action of the global behemoth offers a window into the financial fortitude of one of the most vertically integrated aluminium companies amid ongoing global market turmoil.

Hydro’s dividend was approved at the company’s Annual General Meeting held on May 9, with a record date set for May 13 and payment scheduled on May 20, 2025. The NOK 2.25 dividend translates into a yield of approximately 4.8 per cent at the stock’s May 9 closing price of NOK 46.70 on the Oslo Stock Exchange. This payout sits at the upper end of Hydro’s long-standing capital return policy, targeting 50 per cent of adjusted net income, highlighting continued confidence in the company’s cash flows.

The dividend declaration comes against the backdrop of a slightly recovering aluminium market, which has remained under pressure through the early quarters of 2025 due to weaker-than-expected Chinese demand and elevated energy costs in Europe. However, the company’s ability to maintain a generous dividend despite such macroeconomic headwinds suggests strategic hedging, cost management, and strong performance in its energy and extrusion segments.

To draw perspective, Hydro paid NOK 2.00 per share in 2023 and NOK 1.25 in 2022, making the 2025 payout a marked step-up, even as the LME 3-month aluminium price hovers below the psychological USD 2,300 per tonne level.

Over the last decade, Norsk Hydro has demonstrated a dividend policy that’s both cyclical and strategic, adapting to global aluminium markets, energy shocks, and internal shifts. From a low of NOK 1.00 per share in 2015 to a record-breaking NOK 3.40 in 2022, the company’s payout history tells a story of resilience, prudence, and investor confidence.

Hydro’s dividend recovery began in 2015, with a modest NOK 1.00 per share after weathering weaker aluminium prices in previous years. In 2016, an upswing in operating EBITDA allowed the company to increase its payout to NOK 1.25, a level it maintained through 2017, supported by a firming alumina market and improved operational efficiency.