Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) announced that it has renewed its authorization for the repurchase of up to $1 billion of its common stock and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share.

The company has repurchased two million shares of Carnival Corporation common stock valued at $78 million since the start of fiscal 2013, bringing the total amount purchased to date under the September 2007 $1 billion authorization to $835 million. Yesterday, the company’s board of directors increased the remaining $165 million repurchase authorization to $1 billion.

“Our ongoing share repurchase program demonstrates our continued confidence in the earnings power of our global brands,” said Micky Arison, Carnival Corporation & plc chairman and CEO.  “We remain committed to increasing shareholder returns through a combination of dividend distributions and opportunistic share repurchases,” he added.

The share repurchase authorization covers both Carnival Corporation common stock traded on the New York Stock Exchange and Carnival plc ordinary shares traded on the London Stock Exchange. Repurchases will take place in the open market or privately negotiated transactions in accordance with applicable laws, rules and regulations. The stock repurchase is subject to prevailing market conditions and other considerations.

The board approved a record date for the quarterly dividend of February 22, 2013 with a payment date of March 15, 2013. Holders of Carnival Corporation common stock and Carnival plc ADSs will receive the dividend payable in U.S. dollars.

The dividend for Carnival plc ordinary shares will be payable in U.S. dollars or sterling.  In the absence of instructions or elections to the contrary, holders of Carnival plc ordinary shares will automatically receive the dividend in sterling.

Dividends payable in sterling will be converted from U.S. dollars at the exchange rate quoted by the Bank of England in London at 12 noon on March 1, 2013.  Holders of Carnival plc ordinary shares wishing to receive their dividend in U.S. dollars or participate in the Carnival plc Dividend Reinvestment Plan must elect to do so by February 22, 2013.