Tim Hortons Hikes Dividend 30%
NEW YORK (
) -- Restaurant chain
Tim Hortons
(THI)
says it will increase it quarterly dividend by 30% to Cdn 13 cents per common share.
This is the third time Tim Hortons is making a dividend increase to date.
Tim Hortons new payout rate of Cdn 13 cents, or about 12 U.S. cents per common share, is payable on March 23 of this year to shareholders of record as of March 8, 2010. For U.S. shareholders, dividends will be converted to U.S. dollars based on prevailing exchange rates.
The 30% increase coincides with the board's approval of a higher long-term targeted annual dividend payout range of 30% to 35% of prior year, normalized annual net earnings. Tim Hortons will focus initially on the lower end of the range.
The previous targeted payout range was 20% to 25% of prior year, normalized annual net earnings. Tim Hortons has also announced a new $200 million share repurchase program reflecting its confidence in generating strong free cash flow.
Tim Hortons had 3,578 restaurants as on January 3, 2010, including 3,015 in Canada and 563 in the U.S.
Restaurant stocks are generally trading in the red Thursday morning.
Tim Hortons stock has dipped by 1.3% to $30, while
Wendy's Arby's
(WEN) - Get Report
is down 0.7% at $4.80.
McDonald's
(MCD) - Get Report
stock is 0.9% lower at $64.10. Finally,
Ark Restaurants
(ARKR) - Get Report
has fallen 0.7% to $13.40.
-- Reported by Andrea Tse in New York
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