ShopRite Operator Declares Special Dividends

The board of directors of Village Super Market Inc., a ShopRite operator based in Springfield, N.J., has declared special dividends of $1 per Class A common share and $.65 per Class B common share. Additionally, the board declared regular quarterly dividends of 25 cents per Class A common share and 16.25 cents per Class B common share. Both types of dividends will be payable on Dec. 27 to shareholders of record at the close of business on Dec. 12.

“The board has declared the special dividend, and scheduled the payment of our regular quarterly dividend in December rather than January, in order to provide a return to our shareholders in 2012 while tax rates on dividends remain low,” explained Village Chairman and CEO James Sumas, adding that in this way the board aimed “to demonstrate to our investors our ongoing commitment to enhancing shareholder value.”

Added Sumas, “After paying the estimated $15 million of dividends from cash on hand, the company’s balance sheet remains strong, with ample resources to manage our business and sufficient flexibility for strategic initiatives.”

Village operates 29 supermarkets under the ShopRite banner in New Jersey, Maryland and eastern Pennsylvania. ShopRite operators are members of the Keasbey, N.J.-based retail cooperative Wakefern Food Corp.