Pfizer raises quarterly cash dividend to 39 cents a share vs. 38 cents
Pfizer Inc.
PFE,
said Friday’s its board has raised its quarterly cash dividend to 39 cents a share from 38 cents in the year-earlier period. The new dividend will be payable March 5 to shareholders of record as of Jan. 29. The company said the transaction to combine its generics business Upjohn and Mylan to form Viatris Inc. closed on Nov. 16. “It is expected that Viatris will begin paying a quarterly dividend in the second quarter of 2021, at which time Pfizer’s quarterly dividend will be reduced such that the combined dividend dollar amount received by Pfizer shareholders, based upon the combination of continued Pfizer ownership and approximately 0.124079 shares of Viatris which were granted for each Pfizer share in the spin-off, will equate to Pfizer’s dividend amount in effect immediately prior to the initiation of the Viatris dividend,” the company said in a statement. Shares rose 2.3% premarket and are up 12% in the year to date, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average
DJIA,
has gained 5% and the S&P 500
SPX,
has gained 13.5%.
