US major pays dividend – I nearly fell off my chair

By the time you read this it is old news, but still Delta Air Lines paying a dividend is worthy of nothing less than the editorial section. Delta initiated a 6-cent quarterly dividend yesterday and said its board has authorized a $500m share buyback program as part of a five-year financial plan aimed at shoring-up pension contributions to well above the minimum requirement at $1bn over the next five years and cutting debt. On the news Delta shares rose 3.5% to a 52-week high of $18.84 before falling back to close at $18.71. The dividend is part of Delta’s balanced