St. Louis, Missouri
January 14, 2009
As the latest step in its ongoing
commitment to return value to shareowners,
Monsanto Company today
announced that its Board of Directors declared a 10 percent
increase in the quarterly dividend on its common shares from 24
cents per share to 26.5 cents per share. The dividend is payable
on April 24, 2009 to shareowners of record on April 3, 2009.
"As we have often said, when farmers succeed we succeed, and we
are pleased to share our company's continued success with our
shareowners through the increase of our quarterly dividend,"
said Terry Crews, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer of Monsanto. "The combination of our company's
performance, our financial discipline and the board's ongoing
confidence in our business strategy makes this opportunity
possible."
The dividend relates to the company's second quarter of its 2009
fiscal year. Since Monsanto was spun off as an independent
company in August 2002, its Board of Directors has raised the
dividend eight times for a total increase of more than 340
percent.
Crews noted that the dividend is one of the key elements of
Monsanto's three-pronged approach to using its strong cash
position to benefit shareowners. These include: investing in
strategic acquisitions or collaborations, supporting business
growth through capital spending, and bolstering direct return to
shareowners through increased dividends and share repurchases.
Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of
technology-based solutions and agricultural products that
improve farm productivity and food quality. Monsanto remains
focused on enabling both small-holder and large-scale farmers to
produce more from their land while conserving more of our
world's natural resources such as water and energy. |
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