HUNTINGTON INGALLS INDUSTRIES INCREASES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND TO $0.40 PER SHARE; AUTHORIZES A $300 MILLION INCREASE IN ITS SHARE REPURCHASE PROGRAM TO $600 MILLION

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., Oct. 30, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Huntington Ingalls Industries (NYSE:HII) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.40 per share, a 100 percent increase over the $0.20 per share dividend paid in each of the prior four quarters. The $0.40 per share dividend will be payable on Dec. 12, 2014, to shareholders of record on Nov. 28, 2014.

The Board of Directors also authorized an increase in the company's share repurchase program from $300 million to $600 million and extended the term of the program from Oct. 31, 2017, to Oct. 31, 2019.

"Increasing the quarterly cash dividend and the share repurchase program affirms our commitment to a balanced cash deployment strategy and further demonstrates our confidence in the company's performance and our ability to achieve 9-plus percent operating margin in 2015," said Mike Petters, HII's president and CEO.

Purchases under the share repurchase program may be made from time to time at the discretion of management in the open market, through privately negotiated transactions or through other means, are subject to prevailing market conditions and other factors, and may be suspended or discontinued at any time.