The annual dividend on the common stock of the corporation was raised to $0.75 per share from $0.68 per share.
The Board of Directors authorized the first quarterly dividend of eighteen and three fourths cents (18.75¢) a share to be paid on Feb. 15, 2018, to stockholders of record at the close of business on Jan. 15, 2018.
The Feb. 15 payment will be the 358th consecutive quarterly dividend paid by the company. Since becoming a public company in 1928, Βι¶ΉΣ³» has paid a regular quarterly dividend without interruption.