Altria Group (MO) will raise its quarterly dividend by 2.9 percent to $0.35 per share in Q1 of 2010. Last year the tobacco company hiked its dividend by 6.3 percent to 34 cents per share quarterly.
The increased dividend is payable on April 9, 2010 to shareholders of record at the close of business on March 15, 2010. The ex-date for his next dividend is March 11, 2010.
Altria Group, Inc. is a holding company. Altria’s wholly-owned subsidiaries include Philip Morris USA Inc., U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company LLC, John Middleton Co., Nu Mark LLC, Ste. Michelle Wine Estates Ltd. and Philip Morris Capital Corporation. Altria's tobacco brands include Marlboro, Black & Mild, Copenhagen, Skoal, MarkTen and Green Smoke. Altria also holds an equity investment in brewer SAB-Miller.