USNews.com: Biz Buzz: Christmas in July (7/21/04)
Christmas in July
By Paul J. Lim
Santa Claus has a new name, and it's Bill Gates.
Yesterday, the company Gates cofounded, Microsoft, announced the biggest special one-time dividend in the history of corporate America. The software giant, which dominates an industry not known for dividends, says it will give shareholders $3 back per share as a special payout. "It's the biggest dividend ever," says Howard Silverblatt, equity market analyst for Standard & Poor's and an expert on corporate dividend policies. "It's beyond big—it's enormous."
All told, the dividend will amount to $32 billion in wealth that the company is transferring back to shareholders and injecting into the economy, just in time for Christmas.
Christmas in July
By Paul J. Lim
Santa Claus has a new name, and it's Bill Gates.
Yesterday, the company Gates cofounded, Microsoft, announced the biggest special one-time dividend in the history of corporate America. The software giant, which dominates an industry not known for dividends, says it will give shareholders $3 back per share as a special payout. "It's the biggest dividend ever," says Howard Silverblatt, equity market analyst for Standard & Poor's and an expert on corporate dividend policies. "It's beyond big—it's enormous."
All told, the dividend will amount to $32 billion in wealth that the company is transferring back to shareholders and injecting into the economy, just in time for Christmas.
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