Anglo American (LSE:AAL) is not currently a mainstream income share. Its Yield is below 1%, its Payout Ratio is negative and its Dividend has fallen sharply in the past year. For shareholders, the bigger questions are whether China clears the Merger with Teck Resources and what happens to De Beers.

A much smaller dividend

A data snapshot from 7 October 2026 shows an annual dividend of 17.0p per share and a latest payment of 16.9p. That produces a trailing 12-month yield of 0.7% and an indicated yield of the same level. Year-on-year dividend growth stands at -69.2%, and reports on the annual results in February described a 64% cut. The two figures need not match, since the company's dividends are declared in US dollars and the snapshot is in sterling.

The near-identical annual and latest figures look unusual, as one payment appears to account for almost the entire annual total. Investors should treat that with some caution and not assume it represents a clean annualised run rate.

At the half-year stage in July, Anglo declared an Interim Dividend of 23 US cents per share, up from 7 cents a year earlier. That is a clear recovery, although it fell short of the 27 cents analysts had expected.

The payout ratio is -15.2%. A negative number reflects a loss on a trailing basis, so conventional dividend cover is not meaningful here. The first half alone produced a net loss of $858m, narrower than the $1.9bn loss a year before and driven mainly by a writedown on steelmaking coal. Underlying Earnings told a better story, with core earnings up 35% to $4.0bn, ahead of consensus and helped by copper.

Anglo has paid dividends for nine consecutive years, a relatively short record among large London-listed companies. Its continuous growth streak is zero. Mining dividends often move with Commodity prices and earnings, so a broken growth record is not unusual in this sector, but those seeking steadily rising income will find little support in these figures.

Teck and De Beers dominate

The $53bn all-stock merger with Teck remains the defining event. As of July, it was still awaiting final clearance from China, with Anglo expecting completion between September and March. Chief executive Duncan Wanblad said the company remained confident of approval and was engaging actively with Chinese regulators. No confirmation that clearance has since been granted has been reported, and a trade press headline still pointed to completion by March.

De Beers is the other moving part. Anglo is trying to sell the diamond Business after a prolonged market slump. The unit made an underlying core loss of $113m in the first half, and its carrying value had fallen to $2.3bn at the end of 2025. In July no preferred bidding consortium had been chosen, with an update promised in the second half. Botswana, which owns 15%, was considering whether to use its right of first refusal.

A softer third quarter

Trade press coverage of the production report on 20 October pointed to lower output, with copper down 5%, iron ore down 4% and diamonds down 11%. Snow in Chile was cited as a Factor in the copper figure. Even so, Anglo stuck to its 2026 production guidance, which suggests management regards the shortfall as manageable rather than a change in the full-year picture.

What to watch

The main catalyst is China's decision on Teck, along with any change to the expected timetable. A De Beers update would also matter, particularly for what it says about buyers, Botswana's intentions and the eventual proceeds. For income investors, the next dividend decision with the annual results will show whether July's recovery can continue, and whether a merged group would set out a clearer distribution framework.