Dividend Kings: August Dividend Growth Analysis

Overview
In this article I analyze the 29 Dividend Kings. Note that the number has increased by one since Altria Group, Inc. (MO) recently raised the quarterly dividend allowing the company to enter this exclusive club. The Dividend Kings represent successful companies that have survived through several recessions, major world, events, financial uncertainty, and many market conditions. All the time, these companies have grown their dividend year-in and year-out. This consistency and the ability to return cash to shareholders makes the Dividend Kings of interest to many small investors. A reasonable strategy for Dividend Growth Investors is to start with the Dividend Kings and perform further analyses. In addition, I also present an analysis of Altria since it is a newcomer to the Dividend Kings. Altria may be of interest for those seeking income due to its high dividend yield of 7.7%. Another stock that may interest small investors is Genuine Parts Company (GPC) that has trended up in my rankings. 3M Company (MMM) also performs well and is worthy of further research. Hormel Foods Corp. (HRL) continues to be the top ranked stock in my model but is currently overvalued. One interesting development is that Target Corp. (TGT) has trended lower in my rankings due to the recent surge in stock price.
Background
In these analyses I use nine criteria that permit rapid quantitative screening based on the dividend, earnings growth, dividend growth, dividend safety, and valuation. The... Read more