LAKE FOREST, Ill., Dec 06, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- IDEX CORPORATION (NYSE: IEX) today announced that its Board of Directors has approved a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.17 per common share. The dividend will be paid January 31, 2012 to shareholders of record as of January 13, 2012. This dividend represents the company's 69^th consecutive regular quarterly cash dividend payment.

The company also announced that its Board of Directors increased the authorized level for repurchases of its common stock by approximately $50 million. The increased authorization will be added to the approximately $75 million that remains available from the existing authorization approved by the Board of Directors in April 2008, resulting in a total authorized repurchase amount of $125 million.

Chief Executive Officer Andy Silvernail stated, "We will use the authorized repurchase program to make opportunistic purchases of our common stock over our three-year strategic planning period, which will supplement our overall capital deployment strategy. The primary use of our free cash flow will continue to be strategic acquisitions, while stock repurchases will remain a modest use of that cash flow. We have reviewed our capital requirements over the planning horizon and believe we have the capability to deploy over $1 billion for acquisitions while maintaining strong capital adequacy. IDEX continues to generate very strong free cash and we believe that repurchasing our stock, in conjunction with shareholder dividends and new acquisitions, is a prudent use of our cash flow to maximize our shareholders' return."

Repurchases under the program will be funded with future cash flow generation, and made from time to time in either open market transactions or in privately negotiated transactions. Repurchases may also be made under 10b5-1 plans, which would permit common stock to be repurchased when the Company would otherwise be prohibited from doing so under insider trading laws. The timing, volume, and nature of share repurchases will be at the discretion of management, dependent on market conditions, other priorities of cash investment, applicable securities laws, and other factors, and may be suspended or discontinued at any time.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Sections 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. IDEX's actual performance may differ materially from that indicated or suggested by any such statements. There are a number of factors that could cause those differences, including those factors presented in the company's most recent annual report and other company filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

About IDEX

IDEX Corporation is an applied solutions company specializing in fluid and metering technologies, health and science technologies, dispensing equipment, and fire, safety and other diversified products built to its customers' exacting specifications. Its products are sold in niche markets to a wide range of industries throughout the world. IDEX shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange and Chicago Stock Exchange under the symbol "IEX".

SOURCE: IDEX Corporation

IDEX Corporation
Heath A. Mitts
Vice President -Chief Financial Officer
847.498.7070