National Beverage Corp Latest Company to Declare Special Dividend

Shares National Beverage Corp

rallied strongly higher on Friday, after the company said it would pay a special dividend of $1.50 per share. National Beverage is a small-cap producer of soft drinks. The company owns Faygo and Shasta, among other brands. Year-to-date, shares are down nearly five percent, but saw a strong move to the upside on Friday. National Beverage is yet another company in a long list that has opted to pay out special dividends. Other notable companies include Wynn

, Tyson

, Strum, Ruger

, AOL

, DSW

, American Eagle

, and Limited Brands

. Walmart

said it would move up the date it will pay its next dividend so that it will fall within the current calendar year. Instead of paying in January, Walmart will pay its next dividend in late December. Why the trend? With the upcoming “fiscal cliff,” management of companies flush with cash is increasingly opting to pay out this capital to shareholders. While the fiscal cliff remains unresolved, many view it as a foregone conclusion that taxes on dividends -- particularly dividends paid to high income earners -- will go up. Thus, if companies pay out the dividends in 2012 -- rather than waiting for the calendar to change, it means more money in the pockets of shareholders this year, rather than the coffers of the government. Shares of National Beverage traded near $15.80 on Friday, up over seven percent.