Johnson and Johnson increases quarterly dividend

Johnson and Johnson has underlined its business confidence by announcing a new increase to its quarterly dividend rate.

The company’s board of directors has elected to increase the value of its dividend by 10.2 per cent from 49 cents (32 pence) to 54 cents per share.

This new rate means that the indicated dividend on an annual basis has also risen to $2.16 per share, up from the previous rate of $1.96 per share.

William Weldon, chairman and chief executive officer of Johnson and Johnson, said this represents the 48th consecutive year that its corporate dividend has increased.

He said this is indicative of “our strong financial position and confidence in our ability to deliver outstanding results now and in the future”.

This comes after Johnson and Johnson announced its financial results for the first quarter of 2010 last week, reporting a year-on-year sales increase of four per cent.

Its consumer health division played a part in this growth, with worldwide sector sales increasing by 1.5 per cent compared to the corresponding period of 2009.