FINDLAY, Ohio — Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. will award a quarterly dividend of 10.5 cents per share on common stock, payable June 24 to stockholders of record at the close of business May 27, 2021.
However, the tire maker said the dividend will be paid only if the proposed deal with Goodyear has yet to be consummated.
Should the deal close before May 27, the dividend would not be paid, Cooper said.
Goodyear's $2.5 billion cash-and-stock deal to purchase the Findlay-based tire maker, announced Feb. 22, moved closer to completion in the last week. First, China granted regulatory approval for the deal, then a few days later, Cooper shareholders overwhelmingly approved the acquisition.
In Cooper's Q1 financial report, Cooper CEO Bradley Hughes acknowledged the deal could close sooner than Q4, when officials originally pinpointed.
Cooper officials said the companies "continue to work toward closing the transaction, which is expected to be completed in the second half of 2021," but acknowledged again that the deal "could close earlier, following and subject to receipt of required regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions."
Should the dividend be paid, it would mark the 197th consecutive quarterly dividend the company has paid.