Matthews International Corporation Increases Quarterly Dividend

PITTSBURGH, Oct. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Board of Directors of Matthews International Corporation (Nasdaq: MATW) today declared a quarterly dividend of $0.07 per share on the Company's common stock. The quarterly dividend has been increased one-half cent per share from $0.065 to $0.07. The dividend is payable November 16, 2009 to stockholders of record November 2, 2009.

Joseph C. Bartolacci, President and Chief Executive Officer, stated, "Despite the challenges of fiscal 2009, we continue to have confidence in our long-term strategies. Accordingly, Matthews believes a modest increase in our dividend is appropriate." Mr. Bartolacci noted that this was the Corporation's 15th dividend increase since Matthews became a publicly traded stock in July 1994.

Matthews International Corporation, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a designer, manufacturer and marketer principally of memorialization products and brand solutions. Memorialization products consist primarily of bronze memorials and other memorialization products, caskets and cremation equipment for the cemetery and funeral home industries. Brand solutions include graphics imaging products and services, marking products, and merchandising solutions. The Company's products and services include cast bronze memorials and other memorialization products; caskets; cast and etched architectural products; cremation equipment and cremation-related products; mausoleums; brand management; printing plates and cylinders, pre-press services and imaging services for the primary packaging and corrugated industries; marking and coding equipment and consumables, and industrial automation products for identifying, tracking and conveying various consumer and industrial products, components and packaging containers; and merchandising display systems and marketing and design services.

SOURCE Matthews International Corporation

Released October 22, 2009