Dividend policy in the Republic of Croatia

Predmet ovog rada su dividende kompanija u Republici Hrvatskoj. Iako hrvatsko tržište kapitala nije razvijeno u tolikoj mjeri kao neka druga inozemna tržišta, ono ipak postoji i nije zanemarivo. Svako financijsko tržište, pa tako i tržište u Republici Hrvatskoj zahtjeva stabilnost, kontinuiranost i raznolikost ponude. Odluka kompanija o priključivanju na tržište kapitala ili odluka investitora o ulaganju u to tržište nije jednostavna. Međutim, ipak postoji mnogo kompanija koje ulaze na uređena tržišta kapitala, kao i investitora koji ulažu svoja sredstva u njihove dionice, posebice u one dionice koje sa sobom nose dividendu te im tako osiguravaju dodatni profit, osim profita kojega dobivaju rastom cijene dionice. Odluka o ulaganju u dionice, bez obzira bile one dividende ili ne, mora biti rezultat kvalitetnog istraživanja zarade, likvidnosti i investicijske politike kompanija čije se dionice žele kupiti. Kako bi se to bolje razumjelo, tu su teorije politike dividendi koje nastoje odgovoriti na pitanje uloge dividendi u povećavanju vrijednosti dionice, odnosno same kompanije. Za dioničare, smatra se da je najbolje ulagati u dionice koje imaju srednji prinos od dividende, iako se ne može utjecati na to preferiraju li dioničari više kapitalni dobitak ili dividendu. Što se tiče kompanija, one ne mijenjaju često politike dividendi te uglavnom primjenjuju isplatu stabilnih regularnih dividendi. Kada dođe do rasta profita kompanije, one obično povećaju iznose dividendi, međutim u slučaju pada, one se smanjuju, što investitori smatraju posebno nepoželjnim. Općenito, i investitori i menadžeri kompanija preferiraju stabilnost i dividende koje rastu po razumnoj i nekakvoj predvidljivoj stopi.Međutim, ako dođe do nekakvih nepredviđenih okolnosti, tada odluka kompanija o isplatama dividendi, kao i odluka investitora o ulaganju u dionice, bez obzira nosile one dividendu ili ne, postaje još teža. Baš zbog toga što je područje dividendi i dionica toliko zagonetno te nosi sa sobom određene rizike, važno ga je pokušati što bolje razumjeti kroz istraživanje i analize. Zato je u radu predmet istraživanja kretanje isplate dividendi kompanija u Republici Hrvatskoj (razdoblje od 2016. do 2020. g. s osvrtom na prvi kvartal 2021. g.).The subject of this final work is dividends of companies in the Republic of Croatia. Although the Croatian capital market isn't as developed as any other foreign market, it still exists and it isn't negligible. Every financial market, including the market in the Republic of Croatia, requires stability, continuity and diversity of offers. The company's decision of joining the capital market, or the investor's decision to invest in that market isn't simple. However, there are still many companies that enter regulated capital markets, as well as investors who invest funds in their shares, especially in those shares that has a dividend what provides them an additional profit, apart from that one they get by rising stock price. The decision to invest in stocks, whether dividend or not, must be the result of a quality survey of earnings, liquidity and investment policy of the companies whose stocks are to be purchased. To understand this better, there are dividend policy theories that seek to answer the question of the role of dividends in increasing the stock value, that is, the company itself. For shareholders, it's considered best to invest in shares that have a medium yield, although it cannot be influenced whether shareholders prefer a capital gainings or dividend. As far as companies are concerned, they don't change dividend policy often and generally apply the payment of stable regular dividends. When company's profits grow, they usually increase dividend amounts. However, in the event of a downfall, they decrease the dividend, which investors find particularly undesirable. In general, both – investors and company managers prefer stability and dividends that grow at a reasonable and predictable rate. But, if some unforeseen circumstances occur, then the company's decision on dividend payments, as well as the investor's decision to invest in shares, regardless of whether they have a dividend or not, becomes even more difficult. Precisely because the dividend and stock domain is so enigmatic and carries with it certain risks, it's important to try to understand it as well as possible through research and analysis. Therefore, this final work examines the trends of dividend payment of companies in the Republic of Croatia (period from 2016. to 2020. with reference to the first quarter of 2021.)