AT&T raises Dividend 2.5%

I can't remember the last time I heard a company raising their dividend, but AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) just did and up 2.5%.

Of course they had to make cuts to make the dividend happen, last week the company revealed that it plans to cut 12,000 jobs, or 4% of its 300,000 workers.

What's amazing is that the dividend increase marks the 25th straight year they have raised its payout to shareholders.

AT&T said its quarterly dividend will rise to 41 cents a share from 40 cents a share. On an annual basis, that translates to a move to $1.64 a share from $1.60 a share. The dividend will be payable Feb. 2, 2009, to holders of AT&T's common stock on Jan. 9, 2009.

AT&T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson said in a statement that the latest increase "reflects our board's continued confidence in AT&T's financial strength and underscores our commitment to returning value to stockholders."

Shares of A&T have recovered a bit after hitting the low $20's in October, still the telecom stocks have been trading very volatile, but then again, what hasn't?