Which type of clientele typically prefers high payout ratios?

High payout ratios are generally favored by investors who rely on investment income to meet their current financial needs or obligations. Trusts and endowments often fall into this category because they are typically set up to provide regular distributions to beneficiaries or to fund specific purposes.

Trusts manage assets on behalf of beneficiaries, who may require steady income for living expenses or to fulfill personal obligations. Similarly, endowments are designed to support an institution or cause over the long term and often disburse a portion of their investment income regularly for operational support or scholarships. Therefore, they have a preference for investments that offer consistent and sizable dividend payouts.

In contrast, individual investors might not uniformly prefer high payout ratios, as their preferences can vary widely based on their investment strategies, financial goals, and tax situations. Corporate investors could prefer reinvested earnings to facilitate growth, while venture capitalists typically seek high capital gains from growth-oriented investments rather than immediate income, which makes a high payout ratio less appealing to them.