EMC Insurance Group Inc. on Thursday announced that its board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of 17 cents per share of common stock. The dividend represents a 2 percent increase over the previous dividend, which equated to a split-adjusted dividend of 16.67 cents per share. “Operating results for the first half of the year improved in both segments compared to the prior year,” EMC President and CEO Bruce Kelley said in a release. “This improvement, coupled with our strong balance sheet, provided an opportunity to increase the dividend from a fractional amount.” The dividend is payable Sept. 15 to stockholders of record as of Sept. 8.