<![CDATA[This study investigates whether cash position, free cash flow, firm size, and debt-to-equity ratio explain dividend payout and whether profitability transmits those relationships in Indonesian healthcare firms. The final balanced panel contains 17 companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange over 2019-2024, yielding 102 firm-year observations after outlier trimming. Random-effects panel regressions estimate the direct paths, while Sobel tests assess the indirect paths through return on equity. Cash position and firm size are positively associated with dividend payout ratio, whereas free cash flow, leverage, and profitability have no signifi-cant direct association with payout. Free cash flow and firm size are positively associated with profitability, while leverage is negatively associated with profita-bility; cash position is not significant. None of the four indirect effects through profitability is significant. The evidence indicates that liquidity available at the payment date and organizational scale matter more for healthcare dividend deci-sions than accounting profitability alone. It also suggests that internally generated cash can strengthen profitability without necessarily being distributed, particularly where medical facilities, technology, and service expansion compete for funds. The study contributes a post-pandemic sector-specific test of dividend policy by separating cash availability from free cash flow and by examining profitability as a formally tested mediator.]]>
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