Herman Miller, Inc., Doubles Dividend and Formalizes Corporate
Governance Policies
ZEELAND, Mich., April 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Herman Miller, Inc. ,
announced today its Board of Directors approved a cash dividend of $0.0725 per
share payable July 15, 2004, to shareholders of record as of May 28, 2004.
This represents a 100 percent increase in the dividend and is the first time in
24 quarters that the company has changed its dividend rate. In addition, the
Board formalized its corporate governance policies in compliance with SEC and
Nasdaq certification requirements.
Beth Nickels, Chief Financial Officer, stated, "I'm pleased to announce a
doubling of our dividend. This action reflects our confidence in the business
outlook and our ability to increase profitability and cash flow going forward. We have consistently stated our first priority is to fund our strategic growth
and innovation initiatives. We believe that we have the cash flow to fund
these investments, to pay dividends, and to continue the share repurchase
program previously announced." In addition to the dividend increase, the Board also formalized the company's
corporate governance policies. The company's complete Corporate Governance
philosophy and guidelines can now be viewed on their investor website at
http://www.hermanmiller.com/investors .
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of
Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act, as amended, that are based on management's beliefs,
assumptions, current expectations, estimates, and projections about the office
furniture industry, the economy, and the company itself. Words like
"anticipates," "believes," "confident," "estimates," "expects," "forecasts,"
"likely," "plans," "projects," "should," variations of such words, and similar
expressions identify such forward-looking statements. These statements do not
guarantee future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties, and
assumptions that are difficult to predict with regard to timing, extent,
likelihood, and degree of occurrence. Therefore, actual results and outcomes
may materially differ from what we express or forecast. Furthermore, Herman
Miller, Inc., undertakes no obligation to update, amend, or clarify
forward-looking statements.
Herman Miller provides complete solutions that help create great places to
work. Through research, design, manufacture, and distribution of innovative
interior furnishings, complemented by furniture management and strategic
consulting services, the company serves organizations and individuals around
the world. During fiscal 2003, Herman Miller's award-winning products and
services generated $1.34 billion in revenue. The company was again named among
Business Ethics magazine's "100 Best Corporate Citizens" and was the recipient
of the prestigious National Design Award for product design from the
Smithsonian Institution's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum. In 2004,
Herman Miller was cited in Fortune magazine as the "Most Admired" company in
its industry-and was ranked fourth among all companies surveyed in the category
of "innovation." Herman Miller trades on the NASDAQ stock market under the
symbol MLHR. For additional information visit http://www.hermanmiller.com/ . DATASOURCE: Herman Miller, Inc.
CONTACT: Joe Nowicki, +1-616-654-5222, , Beth Nickels, +1-616-654-8050, , or Media: Mark Schurman, +1-616-654-5498, , Bruce Buursma, +1-616-654-5770, , all of Herman Miller, Inc.
Web site: http://www.hermanmiller.com/ http://www.hermanmiller.com/investors
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