PACCAR Inc. ( PCAR - Analyst Report ) revealed that its board of directors has declared a special dividend of 80 cents per share on top of its regular quarterly dividend of 20 cents in order to soothe investors for paying higher taxes on dividend from January next year.

The special dividend will be paid on December 28, 2012 to stockholders of record as of December 14, 2012. Meanwhile, the regular quarterly dividend is payable on March 5, 2013 to stockholders of record as of February 15, 2013. The company last raised its dividend by 11.1% to 20 cents in May this year.

Many companies are reviewing their dividend policies, as investors would need to pay higher taxes on dividend from next year. Since 2003, investors were required to pay a maximum 15% on dividend income, which will be scrapped in January next year. For the highest income bracket, the tax rate on dividends could go up to 43.4%.

PACCAR, a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold) stock, reported a 14.3% fall in earnings per share to 66 cents in the third quarter of 2012 from 77 cents in the same quarter of prior year. However, earnings were in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate during the quarter. Total profit declined 17.0% to $233.6 million from $281.6 million in the third quarter of 2011.

Revenues in the quarter declined 10.3% to $3.8 billion; however, it was higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.7 billion. The decline in earnings and revenues was attributable to lower industry truck orders in North America and Europe due to the unfavorable conditions in the global economy.

PACCAR is the third largest manufacturer of heavy-duty trucks (with a capacity of more than 15 metric tons) in the world after Volvo ( VOLVY ) and Daimler ( DDAIF ) , and has substantial manufacturing exposure to light/medium trucks (with a capacity of 6–15 metric tons). The company also provides customer support for its products with the supply of aftermarket parts, finance and leasing services.