FedEx Corp. said it is accelerating retirement of 86 aircraft, and the company will boost its dividend next month by a penny a share.
The aircraft retirement, which includes 308 related engines and will result in a $74 million depreciation expense, comes as FedEx continues to modernize its aircraft fleet and improve FedEx Express’ global network.
The company’s board also approved a quarterly cash dividend of 15 cents a share on FedEx Corp. common stock, up 1 cent. The dividend is payable July 1 to stockholders of record as of June 17.
“We are modernizing our aircraft fleet by retiring older, less-efficient, and less-reliable aircraft and replacing them with modern aircraft to build a fleet with higher reliability and better cost efficiency,” said David Bronczek, CEO of FedEx Express.
“With the planned acquisition of new aircraft and projected slower economic growth than previously forecast, FedEx Express is lowering maintenance costs by aggressively parking and retiring aircraft,” he said in a statement.
FedEx Corp. is ranked No. 2 on the Transport Topics Top 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
