The economy is divided into winning and losing sectors, and the State’s strategic investments are thriving, falling on the side of the former. Unlike what happened during the pandemic, tourism, banking, and defense are now in a good moment, which has allowed the value of public holdings on the stock market to increase by 17% in the last year. Dividends from these companies also rise by 8% and for the first time approach 2 billion euros, with Aena and CaixaBank as major contributors.
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The State has a presence in the capital of nine major listed companies. It holds 51% of Aena, 28% of Indra, 20% of Redeia, 18% of CaixaBank, 10% of Telefónica, 10.3% of Ebro Foods, 5% of Enagás, 4.12% of Airbus, and 2.5% of IAG.
It is an investment valued at 51,042 million that makes it one of the major owners of the Ibex and at the same time expands its influence over airports, energy, telecommunications, and banking.
The news lies in the stock market progression of some key sectors and also in the strengthening of the State in several strategic companies since the pandemic. Since then, the Government has acquired 10% of Telefónica to counter the Saudi Telecom group and has increased its presence in Indra by a similar percentage, chosen to channel the billion-euro increase in defense spending.
Indra is the publicly held company that has increased dividend distribution the most
The largest dividends charged to the 2025 fiscal year come to the State from Aena, which has distributed 1.09 euros per share, 11% more, and has the premise of distributing 80% of its earnings among shareholders. The State receives 833 million, at a time when the airport manager records a passenger record and is working on an investment plan of nearly 13 billion euros until 2031. In September, the Government must set the tariffs to finance it.
The other major source of income is CaixaBank, which has contributed 722 million euros to the FROB, 15% more, after earning a record 5,891 million last year. The stake, coming from the nearly 24 billion injected into Bankia during the financial crisis, has always had an expiration date, although the Government keeps postponing it. The latest postponement sets it for December 2027. For now, the State’s 18% in CaixaBank is already worth 16,210 million euros, 47% more than a year ago. Meanwhile, banking results are on a roll, boosted by interest rate hikes and promises of efficiency around AI.
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The other major dividend increase comes from Indra. It raised remuneration by 23%, although the amount corresponding to the State, 14.8 million euros, is modest compared to Aena and CaixaBank. Under the presidency of Ángel Simón and the direction of Josep Maria Recasens, the company is preparing a strategic plan before the end of the year and is trying to rebuild relations with other companies in the sector such as Santa Bárbara. The company has appreciated by 86% in the last year.
The rise of aviation also boosts the accounts of the parent company of Iberia and Vueling, IAG, and the aircraft manufacturer Airbus, now chaired by the Spaniard Amparo Moraleda. Airbus has increased profit by 6% and contributes 104 million to the State’s accounts, compared to 9 million from IAG, 8% more. The stake in Airbus already approaches 6,900 million euros in value and is among the most valuable investments.
Airbus and IAG have also increased remuneration after years of difficulties due to the pandemic
Meanwhile, the managers of the electricity and gas networks, Redeia and Enagás, offer more modest results. In the year of the blackout, Redeia earned just over 500 million euros, after discarding provisions for the incident, considering that it has no risk of assuming the cost of compensation or legal liabilities. This is a different criterion from that of the electric companies, which point to the network operator as responsible.
SEPI already totals 340 million with Telefónica
Telefónica has contributed 170 million to SEPI in dividends, the same amount as last year. With this, the State has already recovered 340 million since it completed the purchase of 10% for about 2,283 million in 2024. However, since May of that year, the stock has fallen by 10%. The group is immersed in its new strategic plan and is interested in consolidation operations in Europe. Outside the stock market, the State owns Correos, Navantia, Renfe, Adif, Tragsa, and Loterías, which is its major source of dividends, with 2,035 million this year, more than all the listed companies combined. It is the great corporate slot machine.
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