Mason Morfit of ValueAct Capital Joins Microsoft Board; John Thompson Comments

Mason Morfit, ValueAct Capital president, has been elected to join the board of directors at Microsoft Corp.

Morfit will also serve in the board’s audit committee, Microsoft said Tuesday statement.

Since Aug. 30, 2013 ValueAct Capital has worked with Microsoft since August 2013 under a cooperation agreement that granted Morfit an option to join the board..

“We’ve had the opportunity to work with [Morfit] over the past six months, and we look forward to working with him more closely as a member of the board,” said John Thompson, Microsoft board chairman.

“Mason brings valuable insights given his financial background, his extensive experience as a public company director and his perspective as a significant Microsoft shareholder.”

Morfit’s appointment brings the Microsoft board’s total number of directors to 11, the company said.

The board has also declared a quarterly dividend of 28 cents per share, payable on June 12 to shareholders of record as of May 15.