Cat maintains dividend rate
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, 13 April 2016 11:59
- Written by Paul Gordon
Caterpillar Inc. on Wednesday announced it will maintain the quarterly cash dividend of 77 cents per share of common stock, payable May 20, 2016, to stockholders of record at the close of business on April 25, 2016. That decision was made by the company’s board of directors.
"Caterpillar's balance sheet remains strong, and I'm pleased to announce we're maintaining our dividend despite continuing difficult marketplace conditions. We've taken actions to further strengthen our competitive position, including lowering our costs and increasing our machine market position for the past five years," said Caterpillar Chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman. "We remain committed to rewarding stockholders through the cycles."
Caterpillar has paid higher dividends to its stockholders for 22 consecutive years, and since 2007, the company's cash dividend has more than doubled. Caterpillar has paid a cash dividend every year since the company was formed and has paid a quarterly dividend since 1933.
Caterpillar will announce its first quarter sales and profits on Friday, April 22. Wall Street analysts who follow Caterpillar expect the company to announce a profit of 69 cents a share, according to a consensus of 16 analysts. While that would be considerably below the profit of $1.86 per share posted in the first quarter last year, it is consistent with the company’s forecast that sales and revenues, and thus profits, would continue to decline in 2016.
Those analysts predict first quarter sales and revenues will be about 25 percent below those of a year ago.
Because of because restructuring costs Caterpillar sustained a loss of 15 cents a share in the fourth quarter of 2015. Without those costs, however, the company made a profit of 74 cents a share.
Caterpillar stock has been climbing in value steadily the past three months. It closed at $57.91 a share on Jan. 25 and ended trading on Wednesday at $79.13 a share, up more than $3.
