ConMed announces dividend

UTICA — ConMed Corp. (NASDAQ: CNMD) will pay a quarterly cash dividend of 15 cents per share on Oct. 5 to shareholders of record as of Sept. 14.

ConMed announced in February of this year that it would begin paying dividends and indicated the company would likely pay out 60 cents in total dividends for the year. The company paid out 15 cents each for the first two quarters.

When the dividend news initially broke, Robert Goldman, senior vice president and a medical devices and supplies analyst at C.L. King & Associates in New York, said it was positive news that indicated good cash flow for the medical-device manufacturer.

Goldman indicated the dividend news also decreased the likelihood that ConMed would make any acquisitions in the near future, but ConMed disproved that theory when it announced Aug. 14 it would acquire Viking Systems, Inc., a Massachusetts medical imaging manufacturer, in a $22.5 million deal.

Viking develops and manufactures 3D and 2D visualization systems for minimally invasive surgery. Following the merger news, Viking released its second-quarter earnings results, showing an 11 percent decline in sales from $2.5 million to $2.2 million for the quarter.

Viking reported a net loss of $890,000, or 1 cent per share, for the second quarter, compared with a net loss of $860,000, or 1 cent per share, a year earlier.

ConMed had second-quarter net income of $10.3 million, or 36 cents per diluted share, on sales of $189.7 million, compared with net income of $8.7 million, or 30 cents per diluted share, on sales of $183.2 million a year ago.

Headquartered at 525 French Rd., Utica, ConMed (www.conmed.com) manufactures surgical devices and equipment for minimally invasive procedures and patient monitoring. The company employs about 3,400 people worldwide.

Contact DeLore at tdelore@tmvbj.com