AES raises quarterly dividend

The board of directors of The AES Corp. has raised its quarterly common stock dividend from 5  to 10 cents a share.

The Arlington-based, global power company said it expects the dividend to grow at  about a 10 percent annual rate, consistent with a free cash-flow growth rate of 10 to 15 percent  year on average through 2018.

The 10-cent dividend is payable on Feb. 17 to shareholders of record at the close of business on Feb. 3.

Andrés Gluski, AES’ president and CEO, said in a statement that the decision to raise the dividend “reflects our strong and growing free cash flow, which is being driven by our $9 billion construction program underway. Through 2018, we will commission more than 7 [gigawatts] GW of new or upgraded capacity, with most of our equity commitments already funded.”

Tom O’Flynn, AES’ executive vice president and CFO, said the company is allocating more of its cash towards its dividend to maximize shareholder return.

AES, a Fortune 500 company, provides energy to 20 countries through a diverse portfolio of distribution businesses as well as thermal and renewable generation facilities.

The company, which employs 17,800 people, had revenues of $16 billion in 2013.