Dividend Challengers (And Near-Challengers): 27 Increases Expected In The Next 11 Weeks

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.
Summer Lull Begins
After a brief pick-up last month, the pace of dividend increase announcements has eased considerably heading into the Summer months. Except for a couple of surges, we should see the typical slowdown from now until Labor Day and beyond. The number of announcements for all Champions, Contenders, Challengers, and Near-Challengers expected in the next 11 weeks has decreased to just 53 from 113 a month ago and 186 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.
4/28/17
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