MLAN Midland Co (MM)

The Midland Company Increases Annual Dividend to 22.5 Cents Per Share -- 9.8 percent dividend increase demonstrates growth, confidence CINCINNATI, Jan. 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- The Midland Company (NASDAQ:MLAN), today announced that its Board of Directors approved a 9.8 percent increase in the company's indicated annual dividend to 22.5 cents per share from 20.5 cents per share. As a result, the next quarterly dividend, payable April 5, 2005, to shareholders of record as of March 22, 2005, will be 5.625 cents per share, up from the previous level of 5.125 cents per share. As of December 31, 2004, Midland had 18,807,000 common shares outstanding. "Midland's annual dividend has increased for 19 consecutive years at a compounded annual growth rate of 10.6 percent for the same period. We are pleased that our consistent growth and profitability has enabled us to reward shareholders by increasing dividends year after year," said Joseph P. Hayden III, chairman and chief operating officer. The company plans to report final results for the fourth quarter and the year ended December 31, 2004 on February 10, 2005. About the Company Midland, which is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, is a provider of specialty insurance products and services through its wholly owned subsidiary, American Modern Insurance Group, which accounts for approximately 96 percent of Midland's consolidated revenue. American Modern specializes in writing physical damage insurance and related coverages on manufactured housing and has expanded to other specialty insurance products including coverage for site-built homes, motorcycles, watercraft, snowmobiles, recreational vehicles, physical damage on long-haul trucks, extended service contracts, excess and surplus lines coverages, credit life and related products as well as collateral protection and mortgage fire products sold to financial institutions and their customers. Midland also owns a niche transportation business, M/G Transport Group, which operates a fleet of dry cargo barges for the movement of dry bulk commodities on the inland waterways. Midland's common stock is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol MLAN. Additional information on the company can be found on the Internet at http://www.midlandcompany.com/ . DATASOURCE: The Midland Company CONTACT: John I. Von Lehman, Executive Vice President and CFO of The Midland Company, +1-513-943-7100 Web site: http://www.midlandcompany.com/

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