The 6 Best Consumer Goods Dividends
Published Thu, 08 Dec 2011 on The Motley Fool

A steady sectorWith that in mind, I decided to do a simple screen for high-dividend stocks from a sector that usually continues to perform even in times of economic difficulty: consumer goods. To find the best dividends in this sector, I looked at profitable companies that currently yield more than 5%. Three companies that made the cut weren't that surprising, but the others were pretty surprising for me: Company Industry Dividend Yield Payout Ratio Vector Group (NYSE: VGR) Tobacco 8.9% 177.5% Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) Business equipment 7.8% 43.3% Altria Group (NYSE: MO) Tobacco 5.7% 67.3% Avon Products (NYSE: AVP) Personal products 5.4% 60.2% Reynolds American (NYSE: RAI) Tobacco 5.5% 84.0% Douglas Dynamics (Nasdaq: PLOW) Auto parts 5.4% 113.0% Source: FinViz.com Quitting won't happen overnightWe've known for years that cigarettes are bad for you, yet these companies continue to sell products. According to the American Cancer Society, nearly 20% of American adults are smokers, prompting me to think the three tobacco companies on this list will continue to make money -- both for themselves, and more importantly, their investors.... Read more