Microsoft raises quarterly dividend by a penny

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Sep 14, 20061 min

Company now pays the same quarterly divident as Intel

Microsoft raised the dividend it pays out to shareholders by a penny per quarter to $0.10 on Wednesday, the same dividend as for chip giant Intel.

The company did not say why it raised the dividend. The company’s stock rose $0.05 cents to close at $25.98 on Wednesday.

For years, investors in Microsoft stock complained to the company to raise its dividend and share the wealth. In 2004, the company responded with a four-year, $75 billion plan to pay a one-time special $3.00 per share cash dividend and launch a massive stock buyback.

By comparison, other technology companies, such as Dell and Apple Computer, for example, pay no dividends on their shares. But Procter & Gamble, a maker of household products such as Tide laundry detergent and Crest tooth paste, pays a dividend of $0.31 per quarter.

The first Microsoft shareholders to receive the increased dividend will be holders on record as of Nov. 16, who will be paid on Dec. 14, Microsoft said.