Coca-Cola Enterprises Ups Dividend by 25%

Coca-Cola Enterprises (NYSE:CCE) raised its dividend on Tuesday by 25%.

The bottler of Coca-Cola soft drinks in Western Europe, which is slated to report fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday, upped the payout to 20 cents a share, payable on March 21 to shareholders of record on March 8.

The quarterly rate is equivalent to an annual dividend of 80 cents a share.

“This is the sixth consecutive annual increase in our dividend, and combined with our share repurchase efforts, clearly demonstrates our ongoing commitment to drive shareowner value,” said Coca-Cola Enterprises CEO John Brock.

The company’s results for the most recent quarter are on tap for Thursday, Feb. 7.

Analysts are calling for fourth-quarter EPS of 43 cents, which would be an increase from 36 cents a year ago. Revenue is projected to rise nearly 11% to $2.1 billion.

Shares of Coca-Cola Enterprises have risen some 26% over the last 12 months.