Microsoft announces a 10% dividend increase and plans to repurchase up to $60 billion in shares
Microsoft announced a 10% increase in quarterly dividend, from $0.75 per share to $0.83 per share, and plans to repurchase up to $60 billion worth of stocks. The dividend will be paid on December 12, 2024, with an ex-dividend date of November 21, 2024. This buyback plan is the largest in Microsoft's history and has no expiration date. Microsoft's investments in the field of artificial intelligence have driven its business growth, with the latest financial report showing an 18% year-on-year increase in free cash flow
According to CNBC, Microsoft (MSFT.US) has announced a new $60 billion stock buyback plan, matching its largest buyback authorization ever, and has raised its quarterly dividend by 10%. The software company stated that it will increase its quarterly dividend to 83 cents per share from 75 cents per share for shareholders as of November 21. The dividend will be paid on December 12, 2024, to shareholders of record as of November 21, 2024. The ex-dividend date will be November 21, 2024. The board also approved an authorization for up to $60 billion in stock buybacks, with no expiration date.
In recent years, as the world's second-largest company by market capitalization, Microsoft has benefited from the market's enthusiasm for artificial intelligence. The software maker has integrated artificial intelligence technology from partner OpenAI into its product line, stating that these tools can enhance its business applications such as Teams, Word, and Outlook. Microsoft earlier on Monday released a series of new artificial intelligence tools.
As of June 30, Microsoft had $75.5 billion in cash and equivalents. The company stated in July that free cash flow for the fourth quarter was $23.3 billion, up 18% year-over-year, reflecting increased capital expenditures to support its cloud and artificial intelligence products