Dividend Challengers (And Near-Challengers): 63 Increases Expected By The End Of June

In compiling the Dividend Champions list (found here) I get to see which companies are nearing the anniversaries of their previous dividend increases. Since most of these firms raise their payout about the same time every year, I can say with some confidence that they are likely to do so again. I have separated the Champions (25 or more years of higher dividends), Contenders (10-24 years), and Challengers (5-9 years) into distinct groupings, so please look for the other articles, which I hope will be published about the same time. Note that "CCC" refers to the combination of Champions, Contenders, and Challengers.
Moderation Moderates
The pace of dividend-increase announcements eased considerably from mid-March to mid-April, but should pick up somewhat as we move into May and June. The number of announcements for all Champions, Contenders, Challengers, and Near-Challengers expected in the next 11 weeks has increased to 113 from 85 a month ago, but still down from 186 a few months ago, during the busiest season around Groundhog Day.
The table below coincides with the usual "forward look" of about 11 weeks for this article. Based on last year's announcements, I'm expecting the following companies to announce dividend increases between now and the anniversary of the Ex-Dividend Date of their previous increase:
Dividend Challengers (5-9 years):
Company
Ticker
No.
3/31/17
Div.
MR%
LY
Ann.
DGR
Name
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