Jack in the Box hikes dividend by 10%

Jack in the Box (JACK) will hike its quarterly dividend by 10 percent to 44 cents per share in 2021. Last year the restaurant operator reinstated a quarterly dividend of 40 cents per share after one quarter without a dividend payment. JACK suspended the dividend on May 13 and effectively paid three dividends last in 2020.

The next dividend of 44 cents per share is payable on June 11, 2021, to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 26, 2021. A new annual rate of $1.76 per share yields 1.6% at a stock price of $113. The ex-dividend date for the next JACK dividend is May 25, 2021.

Jack in the Box initiated a dividend in 2014 and has announced two dividend hikes since in 2015 (+50 pct) and 2016 (+33.3 pct). An annual dividend rate of $1.76 per share brings the total dividend payment to shareholders to $40 million.

San Diego based Jack in the Box Inc. operates and franchises Jack in the Box quick-service (QSR) restaurants. The company is comprised of a single operation segment. Jack in the Box restaurants offer a selection of products including classic burgers like the Jumbo Jack and innovative products such as Buttery Jack burgers. Jack in the Box offers breakfast, lunch, dinner and late-night products. The company opened its first restaurant in 1951 and was the first major hamburger chain to develop and expand the concept of drive-thru restaurants. Jack in the Box had paid a dividend every year since 2014 before the suspension of the dividend was announced in 2020.