Microsoft shares rose 4 percent Monday as investors reacted to reports that the software giant is mulling a massive one-time dividend.
Microsoft, based in Redmond, Wash., may share among shareholders a dividend totaling $10 billion, according to a report in French newspaper Les Echos. The stock rose $1 to $27.45 on Nasdaq as one of the most heavily traded issues.
The Financial Times' Web site carried a report from its Paris-based sister paper late Thursday saying shareholders would receive a dividend of roughly $1 per share in a single payment or spread over several quarters. The report was based on an interview with an unnamed source, Les Echos said.
A $10 billion payout would net Bill Gates, Microsoft chairman, about $1.16 billion, based on his roughly 11.6-percent stake in the company. Steve Ballmer, Microsoft's chief executive, who owns about 4.4 percent of the company, would net $440 million.
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