Polo Ralph Lauren's quarterly common dividend galloped to 10 cents a share last Wednesday from the nickel the company had been paying since 2003. That will put an additional $20 million in stockholders' pockets annually. Polo Ralph Lauren (RL) is one of the nation's premium iconic clothing, accessories and home-furnishings brands. Investors of record Dec. 24 will receive the new quarterly Jan. 8. The ex-dividend date is Dec. 22. In addition, directors authorized $225 million more for stock repurchases. That's atop $206 million remaining in the previous buyback plan. "The increases in our dividend and share-repurchase authorization indicate the confidence our board has in our underlying performance and our future prospects," declared president Roger N. Farah.

On OCT. 5, Barron's published an upbeat piece by Christopher C. Williams on Steris (STE), a leader in infection prevention and equipment sterilization whose roots go back to 1894. The article said that even if the H1N1 virus and other flu threats subside, Steris could still clean up. Indeed, the shares, at 29 and change a month ago and up 54% since early March, were recently quoted at 34. And last Tuesday, the Mentor, Ohio, company, which in May boosted its quarterly common dividend to 11 cents a share from eight cents, declared an extra $2 payout. At the same time, Steris posted fiscal second-quarter (ended Sept. 30) earnings per share of 54 cents, a dime better than Wall Street had expected, on revenue of $314 million, $17 million higher than the pros' consensus guess. "The decision...to return cash to our shareholders through a special dividend is a reflection of our current cash position, free-cash-flow generation and the confidence we have in the company's future," said Chief Executive Walter M. Rosebrough. "Steris's strong balance sheet allows us to make this distribution without hindering our ability to pursue growth alternatives," he added. The respective payment, record and ex-dates for the regular and bonus dividends are Dec. 22, Nov. 24 and Nov. 20. Dividends were initiated in 2005 and have been enriched annually. Yield: 1.30%.

One of the five leading writers of homeowners' insurance in Florida, Universal Insurance Holdings (UVE), voted a year-end dividend of 20 cents a share last Tuesday. That was the same as a year ago, but it followed a raise in the company's interim dividend to 12 cents a share from 10 cents in March. The distribution date is Dec. 4 for holders of record Nov. 16, and the ex-date is Nov. 12. Regular dividends began in April 2006 and have risen annually. Universal is the Sunshine State's second-largest private insurer (after State Farm), and in July was named to Fortune magazine's list of America's fastest-growing small, public companies. The Amex-traded shares set a 52-week high Friday of 6.33 a share and yield 10%.