At a glance

  • Bravura paid 25.23c per share in unfranked dividends with ex-dates in the 12 months to 24 September 2026.
  • At $3.135, that equals a trailing Yield of 8.05%.
  • Special dividends made up 11.15c of that total, with Ordinary Dividends of 14.08c.
  • On ordinary dividends alone, the yield is 4.49%.
  • Bravura joined the S&P/ASX 300 in September 2025.

Scan a list of the ASX's highest-yielding stocks and a pattern jumps out: most of them are there because their share prices have fallen. A shrinking denominator does a lot of the work.

Bravura (ASX:BVS) breaks that pattern.05%. For the yield to climb while the share price is also climbing, the dividends themselves have to be doing the heavy lifting.

And they are, thanks to special dividends. Bravura paid ordinary dividends alongside specials at both results in this window, and those specials account for a large part of the cash returned to shareholders over the past 12 months. Add the buyback of up to $50m, and the picture is of a company returning Capital to its owners through dividends and Buybacks alike.

Bravura's software serves the wealth-management and funds-administration markets. Whatever is funding the extras, investors should treat the specials as discretionary payments rather than assured income.

How much did Bravura pay in the last 12 months?

Every payment in the window was unfranked:

1H26 dividend: ordinary 5.77c plus special 4.46c, for 10.23c per share, ex-dividend 17 February 2026.

FY26 final dividend: ordinary 8.31c plus special 6.69c, for 15.0c per share, ex-dividend 24 August 2026, paid 3 September 2026.

Together, that is 25.23c per share. Divide 25.23c by the $3.135 share price (313.5c) and you get 25.23 ÷ 313.5 = 8.05%.

Now split the total into its parts. The specials added up to 11.15c, while the ordinary dividends came to 14.08c. On ordinary dividends only, Bravura's yield is 4.49%. The gap between 4.49% and 8.05% is entirely down to the specials.

That distinction matters. An ordinary dividend is what a company expects to pay from its ongoing earnings. A Special Dividend is a discretionary extra, usually paid when a company has surplus cash it does not need. Specials can be repeated, as Bravura has shown in this window, but they are not guaranteed.

On timing: the FY26 final went ex on 24 August 2026 and was paid on 3 September 2026. Anyone buying at $3.135 today is not entitled to it and would only receive dividends declared from here.

Why does "unfranked" matter?

Bravura's dividends carry no franking credits. That means there is no gross-up to add on top of the 8.05%, unlike many fully franked Australian dividend payers where the grossed-up yield is quoted alongside the cash yield.

For an Australian resident investor, unfranked dividends are taxed at their marginal rate with no franking offset. That can make a headline yield of 8.05% less valuable after tax than a similar fully franked yield, particularly for investors in low-tax settings who would otherwise benefit from refunded credits.

It is worth keeping this in mind when comparing Bravura with the fully franked names that dominate many high-yield lists. The cash numbers may look similar, but the after-tax outcome can be quite different depending on your circumstances.

What could change the picture from here?

Specials may not continue. The 11.15c of specials is the swing factor. If Bravura stops paying them, or pays less, the trailing yield would drift back towards the ordinary-only figure of 4.49% at today's price.

The buyback is an alternative use of cash. The on-market buyback of up to $50m returns capital in a different way, by reducing the number of shares on issue. Cash spent on buybacks is cash not paid out as dividends.

A rising share price lowers the yield.That is a good problem for existing holders, but it means new buyers pay more for each cent of dividend.

Software businesses depend on contracts. Bravura's Earnings depend on winning and keeping clients, delivering projects and managing costs. Setbacks in any of those areas could affect both profits and the capacity to pay specials.

Trailing is not forward. The 8.05% describes what was paid over the past 12 months. It is not a forecast.