Nike Boosts Quarterly Dividend 14%

(RTTNews) - Nike, Inc. (NKE) said Thursday that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.24 per share on the company's outstanding Class A and Class B Common Stock.

The $0.24 quarterly dividend, which is payable on January 6, 2014, to shareholders of record on December 16, 2013, represents a 14% increase over the previous quarterly rate of $0.21.

This is the twelfth year in a row the company increased its annual dividend. "Today's announcement demonstrates our ongoing commitment to delivering shareholder value," said Mark Parker, President and CEO of NIKE, Inc. "Over the last decade NIKE has returned over $15 billion to shareholders through dividend payments and share repurchases. Today's increase reflects the strength of our balance sheet and the confidence we have in our strategies to generate sustainable, profitable growth and strong cash flows that allow us to invest for the future and return cash to shareholders."