News Release
THE COCA-COLA COMPANY INCREASES ANNUAL DIVIDEND BY 10 PERCENT; 45th CONSECUTIVE ANNUAL INCREASE
Board of Directors Elects Ed Steinike as Vice President
ATLANTA, February 15, 2007 -
The Board of Directors of The Coca-Cola Company today approved the Company's 45th consecutive annual dividend increase, raising the quarterly dividend 10 percent from 31 cents to 34 cents per common share. This is equivalent to an annual dividend of $1.36 per share, up from $1.24 per share in 2006. The dividend is payable April 1, 2007, to shareowners of record as of March 15, 2007.
The increase reflects the Board's confidence in the Company's long-term cash flow. The Company returned $5.4 billion to shareowners in 2006, through $2.9 billion in dividends and $2.5 billion in share repurchases. In the past five years, the Company's dividends have grown at a compound annual rate of more than 11 percent.
The Board also elected Edmund (Ed) R. Steinike as vice president of the Company. As chief development officer, he is responsible for creating global application strategy and executing information technology development across The Coca-Cola Company.
Prior to joining the Company in 2002, Mr. Steinike spent 26 years with General Electric (GE), last serving as chief information officer of GE Power Systems, Energy Products. He holds a bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering from Marquette University.
The Coca-Cola Company is the world's largest beverage company. Along with Coca-Cola®, recognized as the world's most valuable brand, the Company markets four of the world's top five nonalcoholic sparkling brands, including Diet Coke®, Fanta® and Sprite®, and a wide range of other beverages, including diet and light beverages, waters, juices and juice drinks, teas, coffees, energy and sports drinks. Through the world's largest beverage distribution system, consumers in more than 200 countries enjoy the Company's beverages at a rate exceeding 1.4 billion servings each day. For more information about The Coca-Cola Company, please visit our website at www.thecoca-colacompany.com.
NOTE TO EDITORS: View Ed Steinike's bio and image, go there »
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