A press release contained the following announcement: Castleton Sask April 30, 2014 Ridgeton Corporation announced today that

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A press release contained the following announcement:
Castleton Sask April 30, 2014 Ridgeton Corporation announced today that its Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.12 per share of the Corporation's outstanding common shares, payable June 26, 2014, to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 12, 2014. This represents a reduction from the $0.42 quarterly dividend paid by the Corporation since 2012. Frederick Furter, chairman and chief executive officer, commented, "In today's uncertain and challenging economic environment, however, we believe it is important to preserve liquidity. By lowering the dividend to $0.12 per quarter, we will reduce cash outflows by $54 million in 2014. This action will strengthen our balance sheet, improve our credit metrics and provide greater financial flexibility."
At the time of the press release, Ridgeton had 150,000,000 shares authorized and 60 million outstanding. The par value for the company's shares is $0.50 per share.
Required:
1. Prepare journal entries as appropriate for each of the three dates mentioned above.
2. Explain how a dividend cut from $0.42 to $0.12 will strengthen the company's balance sheet?
Corporation
A Corporation is a legal form of business that is separate from its owner. In other words, a corporation is a business or organization formed by a group of people, and its right and liabilities separate from those of the individuals involved. It may...
Dividend
A dividend is a distribution of a portion of company’s earnings, decided and managed by the company’s board of directors, and paid to the shareholders. Dividends are given on the shares. It is a token reward paid to the shareholders for their...
Par Value
Par value is the face value of a bond. Par value is important for a bond or fixed-income instrument because it determines its maturity value as well as the dollar value of coupon payments. The market price of a bond may be above or below par,...
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Fundamentals of Financial Accounting

ISBN: 978-1259103292

4th Canadian edition

Authors: Fred Phillips, Robert Libby, Patricia Libby, Brandy Mackintosh

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