United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) said Thursday that its Board of Directors has declared a regular quarterly dividend and approved a $5 billion stock repurchase authorization.
The company said its board has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.57 per share on all outstanding Class A and Class B shares. The dividend, which reflects a 10% increase approved in February, is payable on May 30 to shareholders of record on May 14.
The new share repurchase authorization has no expiration date and replaces one originally announced in 2008.
UPS also said it expects to use about $5 billion of available cash and issue about $1.8 billion in new debt to finance the acquisition of TNT Express N.V. Compared to the company's initial guidance, this represents a $2 billion increase in cash used to fund the acquisition.
In addition, UPS revised guidance for share repurchases. The company said it plans to spend $1.5 billion on share repurchases in 2012 and expects the same level of activity in 2013. In January, the company said it expected $2.7 billion in share repurchases for 2012.
In March, UPS and TNT Express announced a definitive all-cash offer of €9.50 per ordinary share of TNT, valuing the deal at roughly $6.8 billion. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter.
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