Southwest Airlines Co ( id="symbol_LUV.N_0">LUV.N) on Wednesday announced a boost in its dividend and its share repurchase program and said it is changing some plane orders and deliveries.
_0">The discounter said its board boosted the quarterly dividend to 4 cents a share from 1 cent a share, to begin with the payment on June 26 to shareholders of record on June 5.
The company said its share buyback authorization was increased to $1.5 billion from $1 billion.
Southwest also said it plans to buy 10 pre-owned 737-700s airplanes to be delivered in 2014 and 2015, and it made changes to some existing aircraft orders. The carrier said it would be the first customer to take the 7 series of Boeing's ( id="symbol_BA.N_1">BA.N) upcoming 737 MAX plane in 2019. Southwest has an all-Boeing fleet.
(Reporting by Karen Jacobs; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)