American International Group Inc. announced at its annual meeting today that the company is raising its quarterly cash dividend 20 percent to 15 cents a share.
Chief Executive Officer Martin Sullivan revealed the move at a session which paid homage to the insurer's storied past, but put emphasis on a different future.
All 15 directors won re-election to the board. As part of its corporate governance reform effort three new independent directors will soon join the board and the chairman and CEO jobs will remain separate.
Mr. Sullivan paid tribute to Maurice Greenberg, who was ousted by the board earlier this year when it was known he was invoking his right against self-incrimination with investigators questioning him about the company's accounting for certain transactions.
Mr. Greenberg recently issued a white paper suggesting the board in issuing a restatement that lowered the company value by $4 billion was seeking to justify his removal.
After lauding Mr. Greenberg for his decades of service in building the company, Mr. Sullivan said his own approach will be different.
"I have a very open approach and if I don't feel I know the answer, I will not be afraid to go look for it," he told the shareholders.
He listed softening property-casualty insurance rates, a flat yield curve and capital market challenges in the aftermath of accounting scandal-related downgrades as among the greatest challenges facing the company in the post-Greenberg era.
While refusing to comment specifically on regulatory issues, Mr. Sullivan nonetheless asserted that "this company is committed to working openly and without reservation with our regulators throughout the world." The company has been under continuing scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission and New York Attorney General's Office since last year concerning its accounting practices and other business activities.
The session heard only one shareholder complaint from an investor who said the company should have more discussions with analysts to highlight the company's dominance in certain international markets.
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