Mondelez Hikes Buybacks, Raises Dividend

Global snack master Mondelez Internationalannounced today that not only was it hiking its stock buybacks by nearly $5 billion but the board of directors also approved an 8% increase in its quarterly dividend.

The board has authorized the snack maker to repurchase as much as $6 billion worth of stock through 2016, up from the $1.2 billion remaining under its prior authorization, and said it anticipated buying back around $1 billion to $2 billion a year.

At the same time, Mondelez said it would pay its third-quarter dividend in the amount of $0.14 per share, an increase of 8% over the $0.13-per-share payout it made to investors last quarter.

Stating the moves reflected the boards confidence in its financial foundations as well as its ability to return value to shareholders, Mondelez International Chairman and CEO Irene Rosenfeld said, "We believe that the combination of strong top-line growth in emerging markets, double-digit EPS gains, higher dividends and a substantial increase in share buybacks creates a highly attractive mix that will deliver superior shareholder returns."

The regular dividend payment equates to a $0.56-per-share annual dividend, yielding 1.8% based on the closing price today of Mondelez International's stock.

MDLZ Dividend data by YCharts. Chart does not reflect new higher dividend announcement.

The article Mondelez Hikes Buybacks, Raises Dividend originally appeared on Fool.com.

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