LOS ANGELES, Feb. 10, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) announced today that its Board of Directors has approved a quarterly dividend of $.31 per share of common stock for an annual rate of $1.24 per share, compared to the previous annual rate of $1.10. The dividend will be payable on April 15, 2005 to stockholders of record on March 10, 2005. Occidental has paid cash dividends continuously since 1975.
In announcing the Board's declaration, Dr. Ray R. Irani, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer said, "This is the third increase in the dividend since 2002, demonstrating both our commitment to enhance total returns to our stockholders and our growing momentum, supported by increasing financial strength. This increase follows a year of record earnings and free cash flow and continued strengthening of our balance sheet. Stockholders' equity is at an all-time high, and our balance sheet has never been stronger. We believe we are well positioned to continue the disciplined execution of our strategy for continued profitable growth in 2005 and beyond. The Board will continue to evaluate our dividend policy annually."
Statements in this release that contain words such as "will", "expect" or "estimate", or otherwise relate to the future, are forward-looking and involve risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect expected results. Factors that could cause results to differ materially include, but are not limited to: exploration risks such as drilling of unsuccessful wells, global commodity pricing fluctuations and supply/demand considerations for oil, gas and chemicals; higher-than-expected costs; political risk; and not successfully completing (or any material delay in) any expansion, capital expenditure, acquisition, or disposition. Occidental disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.