Under pressure from major investors to deliver some value, the board of directors at Cablevision has declared the company’s first ever regular dividend payment. The quarterly outlay of 10 cents per share will be paid for the first time on September 18th to shareholders of record on August 26th.
Cablevision had announced earlier this month that it was looking at paying a dividend, as well as other options, to enhance shareholder value.
“Our strong performance and cash flow enable us to return value to shareholders through dividends. This action is a part of the process we have undertaken to enhance shareholder value as we continue to explore other options that we believe will help align the market value of the company’s common stock with Cablevision’s underlying operating performance,” said President and CEO James Dolan in announcing the dividend declaration.
Will that be enough to satisfy restless shareholders? Large stakeholders led by Mario Gabelli have been pressuring Cablevision to take actions to boost the company’s share price. And when it comes to activist shareholders, another has moved into the playing field at Cablevision. Harbinger Capital has been buying shares lately and now holds 11.45 million shares of Cablevision’s stock, amounting to 4.9% of the publicly traded Class A shares. The Dolan family holds voting control of the company via its Class B shares.
