Babcock & Wilcox Co. is going to start paying its first dividend since being spun off in 2010 from Texas-based McDermott International Inc.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based energy industry manufacturer, which has substantial operations in Barberton, said it will pay a quarterly dividend of 8 cents per share on Dec. 17 to shareholders of record Nov. 19. The announcement was included in the company’s third-quarter earnings report released after the stock market closed Wednesday.
The dividend works out to 32 cents per share for the year. The company also said it will spend up to $250 million to buy back shares of its stock over a two-year period.
B&W reported earning $40.5 million, or 34 cents per share, on revenue of $807.6 million for the quarter.
Earnings were down from $45.7 million, or 39 cents per share, compared to a year ago. Revenue was up $100 million, or 14.1 percent, from $707.6 million a year ago.
For the first nine months of the year, B&W has earned $151.3 million, or $1.27 a share, on revenue of $2.4 billion. For the same period in 2011, B&W earned $105.4 million, or 89 cents per share, on revenue of $2.2 billion.
Income from the Barberton-based Power Generation Group rose to $426.4 million for the quarter, up from $385.3 million a year ago. Income fell to $30.4 million from $38.8 million in the third quarter of 2011.
“In the third quarter, the company achieved its eighth consecutive quarter of year-over-year consolidated revenue growth,” E. James Ferland, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.
The company also adopted a pension plan freeze after 2015 for salaried employees; elected to enact a plan, allowed by legislation, that will significantly reduce its annual pension contributions over the next couple of years; and adopted what is called a “mark-to-market” accounting method for pensions, Ferland said.
The quarterly dividend and share repurchase program reflect B&W’s confidence in its long-term financial strength and a commitment to maximize shareholder value, he said.
B&W makes coal-fired boilers and related pollution control equipment for electric utilities and also has a nuclear power subsidiary that supplies the U.S. Navy. The Nuclear Operations Group reported record quarterly revenue, the company reported.
Company executives will have a conference call with industry analysts this morning at 8:30 a.m. The public can listen in via webcast by going to the investor relations section at www.babcock.com.
Shares on Wednesday closed at $26.25, unchanged. Shares are up 8.7 percent since Jan. 1 and are up 16.4 percent from a year ago.
Jim Mackinnon can be reached at 330-996-3544 or jmackinnon@thebeaconjournal.com.