Among the smaller economies of Europe the country of Austria has some unique advantages. Many Austrian companies have high exposure to Eastern and Central European countries which have recovered after the credit crisis and are now in a better position than many developed European countries.Hence Austrian companies offer an efficient way to participate in the growth of these countries.In order to identify some of the top dividend-paying Austrian stocks I referred to the The DAXglobal® Austria Dividend Index.
This index “replicates the dividend strategy based on the Austrian Top 30 by market cap. It contains the top ten companies with the highest dividend yield. The members of the DAXglobal® Austria Dividend Index are adjusted annually in September based on recent dividend payments. The index shares are weighted at a maximum of ten percent, which prevents individual stocks from dominating the index.”
The 10 Components of the DAXglobal® Austria Dividend Index are:
- Telekom Austria AG
- OMV AG (OMVZY)
- Mayr-Melnhof Karton AG (MNHFY)
- Voestalpine AG (VLPNY)
- Erste Group Bank AG (EBKDY)
- Andritz AG (ADRZY)
- RAIFFEISEN INTL BK-HO.INH (RAIFY)
- Vienna Insurance GRP INH.(VNRGY)
- OESTERREICH. POST AG(OERCF)
- STRABAG SE (SBAGY)
A simple and easy way to gain exposure to most of the companies noted above is via the MSCI Austria Investable Market Index ETF (EWO). The fund has an asset base of about $216 million and portfolio has 31 holdings.
Disclosure: Long EBKDY
