McDonald's shares reach all time high after 50 percent dividend increase

McDonald's Corp., the world's largest restaurant company, climbed the most in two years in New York trading after boosting its annual dividend by 50 percent as part of a plan to return as much as $17 billion to investors.

McDonald's rose $3.10, or 6.1 percent, to $54.30, an all- time high, at 4:02 p.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The payout increases to $1.50 a share from $1 and yields 2.8 percent.