BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, July 14, 2005 - The Board of Directors of The Adams Express Company today declared a dividend of $.05 per share, payable September 1, 2005, to stockholders of record August 16, 2005.
Performance
For the six months ended June 30th, the total return on Adams Express' net asset value, after adjusting for income dividends and capital gain distributions paid, was 0.9 percent, outperforming its benchmarks. Comparable figures for the Standard & Poor's Index of 500 Stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were -0.8 percent and -3.8 percent, respectively.
For the twelve months ended June 30, 2005, the total return on Adams Express' net asset value, after adjusting for income dividends as well as capital gain distributions paid, was 8.4 percent, appreciably outperforming the Standard & Poor's Index of 500 Stocks and the Dow Jones Industrial Average, whose comparable returns were 6.3 percent and 0.8 percent, respectively.
Adams Express' net asset value at June 30, 2005, is compared with the year earlier in the following table:
Net Asset Value
6/30/05 |
6/30/04 |
|
Net assets |
$1,279,265,092 |
$1,248,429,983 |
Shares outstanding |
84,960,583 |
84,408,612 |
Net assets per share |
$15.06* |
$14.79 |
*After capital gain distribution of $0.01 per share paid in March 2005.
Capital gains realized through June 30, 2005 amounted to $0.21 per share.
The Company repurchased 1,195,400 shares of its Common Stock during the six month period.
Securities Transactions
During the three months ended June 30, 2005, the Company added two new names to its investment list with the additions of Outback Steakhouse, Inc. and Treehouse Foods Inc. (received 1 share Treehouse Foods for 5 shares of Dean Foods Co. held). The Company increased its holdings in Automatic Data Processing Inc., Bank of America Corp., Bank Atlantic Bancorp Inc., Bunge Ltd., Clear Channel Communications Inc., Del Monte Foods Co., Fifth Third Bancorp, and United Parcel Service, Inc.
Two issues were eliminated from the investment list with the sales of Enzon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Ryland Group Inc. The Company reduced its holdings in AMBAC Financial Group, Inc., Brinker International Inc., Canadian National Railway Co., Corning Inc., Dean Foods Co., HCA Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings, Murphy Oil Corp., Provident Bankshares Corp., Sun Microsystems Inc., and United Technologies Corp.
The Adams Express Company is a Baltimore-based closed-end investment company traded on the New York Stock Exchange and Pacific Exchange under the symbol ADX.
The Semi-Annual Report is expected to be released on or about July 20, 2005.
For further information, please contact:
Joseph M. Truta, President
Lawrence L. Hooper, Jr., Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary
(410) 752-5900 or (800) 638-2479
E-mail: contact@adamsexpress.com
Website: www.adamsexpress.com