The dividends paid by the CAC 40 companies reached a record of 57.5 billion euros in 2021, in particular, contributing 2.4 billion euros to the Arnault family and 2 billion to the American Blackrock fund, calculated the NGO “Observatory of Multinationals”.
“Drowned in profits” that have skyrocketed compared to the year 2020 weighed down by Covid-19, the groups of the main French stock market indices have “again prioritized (their) shareholders”, accuses the NGO in its annual report released on Monday.
Dividends, 32% more than in 2020, are added to another form of shareholder reward: share repurchases intended to support the stock market price, for a total of 23,000 million euros in 2021.
Arnault, Blackrock and the State as main beneficiaries
After the Arnault and Blackrock group, the French State is, with 1,320 million euros, the third beneficiary of dividend payments on the occasion of 2021 profits – ahead of the Bettencourt families (890 million) and Pinault (620 million), details the association.
“About a tenth of all dividends” from CAC 40 go to 16 families historically linked to some of the largest French groups such as LVMH, Hermès, L’Oréal or Kering, according to the NGO.
In addition, “the tax contribution of the CAC 40 groups seems to grow much less than their profits and dividends,” says the Observatory of multinationals.
14% “of all CAC 40 subsidiaries are located in tax havens,” the report states, although it acknowledges that “the degree of presence of large French groups in these jurisdictions (…) is not sufficient to + demonstrate + that there is illegal tax evasion.
Boss compensation up to 52%
The average remuneration of a CAC manager increased by 52% in 2021 to reach 6.6 million euros, after, there too, a year of weaker health crisis.
“The increase between 2019 and 2021 is 26.4%,” adds the NGO, and “in the last positions of the ranking appear the leaders of companies in which the State is a shareholder.” The Dassault group is in the lead, with 44 million euros of remuneration for its CEO.
On average, a CAC 40 company spent 65,300 euros per employee in 2021 (which notably includes employer contributions).
Reported to executive compensation, “an average CAC 40 employee must work 139 days to earn what his boss earns in a single day,” the NGO calculates.
Source: BFM TV
