NEW YORK — Boeing unveiled a $14 billion share buyback program on Monday and boosted its quarterly dividend as it shared its bounty with investors thanks to strong demand.
Boeing said it would pay investors a $1.09 dividend for the quarter under way, a 20% increase from a year ago. The company noted that it had raised the dividend for five straight years.
In addition, Boeing will embark on a new $14 billion share repurchase program that replaces the $12 billion buyback approved last December, of which $5.25 billion remained. The company said repurchasing was expected to resume in January and likely would be made over the next two to three years.
“Once again, we are demonstrating our commitment to a balanced cash deployment strategy that fuels investments in our people, innovation and growth, and returns significant value to our shareholders,” Boeing president and CEO Dennis Muilenburg said in a statement.
Investors welcomed the bonanza, pushing shares in the Dow member up 1.2% to $144.75 in after-hours trade.
Boeing has benefited from a strong civil aviation market as airlines, reaping cost savings from lower fuel prices, update and expand their fleets. Boeing reported a $485 billion backlog of nearly 5,700 commercial airplane orders at the end of the third quarter and said it had delivered 580 planes in the year to September.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2015
