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2022 free shares attribution

On June 8, 2022, Air Liquide made its 31st attribution of free shares. What does this operation consist of? What are my advantages? How are my fractional shares calculated? We explain it all to you.

Understanding the free share attribution 

What is the attribution of bonus shares?

Air Liquide gives back a part of its reserves (part of the undistributed previous net results) to the Shareholders in the form of free shares in proportion to the number of shares already held: 1 free share for 10 held.

When does it take place?

The attribution of free shares at the rate of 1 free share for 10 held took place on June 8, 2022.

Friday, June 3, 2022 was the last day of execution of a buy order (stock market closing time) in order for your purchase to qualify for the free share attribution that occurred the following Wednesday, June 8.

Who will benefit?

All Shareholders, whether they hold their shares directly with Air Liquide (in direct registered form) or with their bank (in intermediary registered or bearer form). 

How does the loyalty bonus apply when free shares are distributed?

The loyalty bonus was set up by Air Liquide to reward the loyalty of its Shareholders.

To benefit from this program, all you have to do is hold Air Liquide registered shares, either with a financial institution (intermediary registered shares) or directly with Air Liquide (direct registered shares), for more than two full calendar years. If these conditions are met, the shares you hold are eligible for the loyalty bonus which are applied to them without any action on your part. In particular, you benefit from a +10% bonus on the number of free shares allocated at the time of their distribution.

An example in a few figures

Standard free shares (parity of 1 share for 10 held) with the 2022 allocation



In June 2022, I held 307 shares in my portfolio. I therefore received 30 free shares thanks to the parity of 1 free share for 10 held.



Additional free shares thanks to the loyalty bonus (+10% increase in the number of shares allocated) with the 2022 allocation



Out of these 307 shares, 215 benefit from the loyalty bonus. I therefore received 2 additional free shares thanks to the +10% bonus, i.e. 1 free share for every 100 held.

What is a fractional share?

As the attribution is based on a ratio of 1 free share for every 10 held, the calculation of the number of shares attributed often does not give a whole number. The value of the fraction of the share that cannot be distributed is called the "fractional share". You will receive the value of the fractional shares that cannot be distributed directly into your bank account.

How are fractional shares calculated? 

Following the attribution, a balance of unallocated shares corresponding to the fractional shares remains. These shares are sold on the market by the account holders (Air Liquide for direct registered shares, or your financial institution for intermediary registered and bearer shares). The result of this sale will define the average unit selling price of the shares sold. It is based on this average unit selling price that the fractional shares will be paid out in the second half of June 2022 following the rules described below.

The value of fractional shares may differ from one financial institution to another.

Explanation of the calculation of the fractional share after the attribution of 1 free share for every 10 shares held Explanation of the calculation of the fractional share after the attribution of 1 free share for every 100 shares held (loyalty bonus)
Average unit sale price of shares sold by the account holder / 10 Average unit sale price of shares sold by the account holder / 100
 
What is the associated taxation?

The compensation for fractional shares must be included in the total of the sales and is taxed as a total capital gain. This amount will appear as part of your sales on the tax reporting form if you hold your shares directly with Air Liquide (in direct registered form), which you will receive in 2023 as part of your 2022 income.

Your benefits are preserved

The free shares have the same characteristics as the shares from which they are issued: 

  • Loyalty bonus
  • Holding period
  • Voting rights
  • Dividend rights

 

Good to know 

The attribution of free shares is done on an account-by-account basis. Therefore if you own shares in an ordinary securities account and in a PEA, for example, there is no fungibility of fractional shares (you cannot add them to obtain a new free share).



The attribution of free shares is also done account by account, so there is no fractional share fungibility for your "intermediary registered" shares and your "bearer" shares (here again, you cannot add them).