Royce Small-Cap Trust Raises Quarterly Dividend to 31 Cents

Royce Small-Cap Trust, Inc. (RVT) increased its quarterly dividend to $0.31 per share from $0.30, a 3.33% rise, with the shares trading ex-dividend on June 11, 2026.

The closed-end fund, part of the financial services sector, has now recorded two consecutive years of dividend growth. The move follows a prior dividend cut in 2023, making the latest increase a continuation of a relatively recent rebuilding period rather than a long uninterrupted growth record.

RVT’s forward annual yield is 8.2%, based on the locked dividend data and a share price of $17.56. The fund’s annual dividend per share is listed at $1.44. Its market capitalization is $2.15 billion, and SmarterDividends’ dividend safety score for the fund is 63 out of 100, equivalent to a C grade.

Fund Context

Royce Small-Cap Trust is one of Royce Investment Partners’ closed-end funds. Royce says its closed-end funds, including Royce Small-Cap Trust, trade on the New York Stock Exchange, and the firm describes itself as focused on small-cap investing. Royce also says it has operated as a small-cap specialist since 1972, giving the fund family a long history in smaller-company equities.

The broader backdrop for small-cap strategies has been mixed but increasingly watched. Recent market commentary has pointed to renewed interest in smaller companies tied to artificial-intelligence infrastructure and semiconductor supply chains, while also noting that small-cap and microcap portfolios can differ meaningfully from large-cap benchmarks. That context matters for RVT because closed-end fund distributions may be influenced by portfolio income, realized gains, net asset value trends and board policy rather than operating earnings in the way a typical corporation’s dividend is.

What It Means For Income Investors

For income-focused shareholders, the increase modestly raises the current quarterly cash payout and confirms a second year of dividend growth after the 2023 cut. The 8.2% forward annual yield is notable, but the C safety grade and the recent cut history argue for treating the payout as a monitored income stream rather than an established long-term growth record.

As with other closed-end funds, investors will typically watch whether distributions are supported by portfolio performance over time, whether any portion is classified as return of capital, and how the fund trades relative to its net asset value. The dividend increase is a positive income event, but its durability will depend on the fund’s future investment results and distribution policy.