The facts tell a different story. At the 2008 AGM in Nov 08 at the Marriott Hotel Brisbane, the sale of "Teresa" for $1.5B was still a supposedly going through. Remember, the GFC had started and there was much uncertainty.
At that AGM I asked Bond during question time, if LNC was planning a dividend when the sale of "Teresa" was finalised. As a shareholder, I thought it would be a great reward for loyal shareholders,using some of the tax credits after paying tax on the sale proceeds, and only cost about $40M at that time (a $0.10 dividend) out of $1.5B.
Clearly Bond had not thought much about a dividend at that time and drew on the chuckles in the audience to rubbish the idea. After the meeting, discussions with other shareholders including a Director were much more favourable towards a dividend.
The board decision was much different after the sale of "Galilee" in Aug 2010 even though the cash received was only $500M, with many shareholders apart from Bond, welcoming the decision.
LNC Price at posting:
61.0¢ Sentiment: LT Buy Disclosure: Held
