Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Dividend Increase: MSFT

Microsoft (MSFT) is increasing its quarterly dividend by 21.7%, from $0.23 to $0.28 per share, putting the company on track for its 11th consecutive year of dividend growth (news release). The company also announced a new $40 billion share repurchase program. Given that I own 115 shares of MSFT, my quarterly dividend increases from $26.45 to $32.20 and my yield on cost becomes 4.14%. The extra $23.00 in annual dividend income raises my forward 12-month dividend total to $2,768. Thus far this year, there have been dividend increases for 24 of the 29 stocks in my portfolio.

6 comments:

  1. This was pretty big news today. It was all over bloomberg and cnbc. They are extending their share buyback program as well. The dividend raise is huge I gotta say, 21% is substantial. I wish they paid in another month though because December has so many other great stocks to select from already. Gonna be a tough choice around then, I'll just have to see which ones are 'cheap' at the time.

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    1. Captain: I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the news; it is a much larger dividend increase than I expected. Makes me wish I had bought more shares back when the stock was trading at around $27.

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  2. DGM - I have an equal weight position in MSFT, yet I am always mulling over selling it (bought it at about $30.50 a year ago, so it has returned 10+% in that time). It is one of the few stocks I own that I can't quite convince myself I am in it for the long run. Have to say the 22% dividend pop is making it a little easier to hold...

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    1. Dining: I continue to think MSFT is a good investment, but it does require more monitoring than other companies. I am interested in seeing how the company does under a new CEO.

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  3. DGM,

    Congrats! MSFT has turned out much better than I expected it to over the last couple years. Good for you for jumping on this train cheap. I regret not investing MSFT among a couple others (GIS, GPC, BDX). Dividend growth at its finest here!

    Best wishes.

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    1. DM: Thanks! Even though MSFT has been more volatile than most of my other stocks, I have achieved a pretty good return on my investment. The large dividend increase is welcome news and makes me glad to be a shareholder.

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