Caterpillar Increases Dividend Rate, Reaffirms 2011 Outlook
The Caterpillar Inc. board of directors this week voted to raise the quarterly cash dividend by two cents to $0.46 per share of common stock, payable Aug. 20, 2011, to stockholders of record at the close of business, July 20.
“In addition to increasing the dividend, our focus on cash flow and the strength of our financial position enabled us to finance the Bucyrus acquisition without the need for equity and is enabling substantial investment to prepare Caterpillar for the developing improvement in the business cycle and to achieve our long-term financial goals,” said Caterpillar chairman and CEO Doug Oberhelman.
The company said 2011 looks to be a good year with demand for its products continuing to improve and its focus squarely on execution and controlling costs. As a result, Caterpillar reaffirmed its financial outlook for 2011. It expects sales and revenues in a range from $52 to $54 billion and profit between $6.25 and $6.75 per share.
"As we look ahead there are tremendous opportunities for Caterpillar in all geographies and across our entire product range,” Oberhelman said. “That’s why over the past year we’ve announced a number of investments to increase production capacity and improve product support for our growing base of customers around the world. We have also announced three, large strategic acquisitions, and are investing heavily in product development to position Caterpillar to fully capitalize on these opportunities.”
The $0.46 dividend is an increase of five percent over the previous rate of $0.44 per share. For 18 years in a row, Caterpillar has paid higher dividends to its stockholders, and since 1998, the company's cash dividend has more than tripled.
Caterpillar Inc. is headquartered in Peoria, Ill.
