Phillips 66 Hikes Quarterly Dividend By 12.5%

Phillips 66 PSX said its board has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.63 per share on its common stock. That represented 12.5 percent increase in the dividend rate from the previous quarter. According to the company, the dividend would be payable on June 1 to its shareholders.

The company has fixed the record date of May 18 for determining the shareholders name to get the dividend. The company added that its board has increased the dividend six times since its inception in 2013, representing a 33 percent compound annual growth rate.

Phillips 66 Chairman and CEO, Greg Garland, commented, "The increase in the dividend reflects our board's confidence in the company's strategy and the cash flow resilience of our diversified portfolio. We are committed to maintaining a growing, affordable and competitive dividend. We will continue to exercise a balanced approach to allocating capital and optimizing shareholder value through distributions and investment in the business."

The current dividend provided a yield of 2.80 percent while the payout ratio worked out to 34 percent. Significantly, the company continued to boost the dividend rate in the last three-year period.

The stock traded 1.6 percent down on Wednesday.