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Are there securities where investors are always paid a specific percentage of the company's profits if profits have been made?

I know that some REITs are mandated to distribute minimum percentage of their profits as dividends. Are there any other securities that pay a fixed percentage of profits as dividends?

(original question, but low quality: Some basic questions)

Flux
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  • They may exist but I have never come across a dividend based on profits. There are some preferred stocks whose dividend is floating (tied to LIBOR) and I suppose, eventually to SOFR. – Bob Baerker May 13 '20 at 14:10

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Not for arbitrary corporations (meaning that companies cannot be "forced" to distribute their profits), but Master Limited Partnerships have a structure similar to what you're describing. They distribute most of their profits to unitholders in a way that's analogous to a dividend but with different tax treatment.

MLPs are limited to certain industries, and abut 2/3 of them are in the oil and gas midstream sector (gas pipelines/processing, oil transportation, etc.). They are typically companies that operate based on fixed fees, so they're not as exposed to fluctuations in commodity prices.

D Stanley
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