The Most Promising Dividends in Title Insurance

Yields and growth rates and payout ratios, oh my!Before we get to those companies, though, you should understand just why you'd want to own dividend payers. These stocks can contribute a huge chunk of growth to your portfolio in good times, and bolster it during market downturns. As my colleague Matt Koppenheffer has noted: "Between 2000 and 2009, the average dividend-adjusted return on stocks with market caps above $5 billion and a trailing yield of 2.5% or better was a whopping 114%. Compare that to a 19% drop for the S&P 500."... more

U.K. Dividends Hit a 3-Year High

In the second quarter of this year, the cash dividends paid to shareholders by U.K.-listed companies hit their highest level since the collapse of U.S. investment bankLehman Brothers in September 2008. Hence, in my view, it's time investors stuffed a few more dividend giants into their portfolios. A cataract of cashThanks to improving trading conditions and strengthened balance sheets, British businesses hiked their dividends by more than a quarter (27%) on the second quarter of 2010, according to the latest Capita Registrars Dividend Monitor Report. This growth takes dividends to a three-year high, which is great news for investors.... more

British American Tobacco's Dividend Is Safe

Here, we'll highlight a given company and its closest competitors to see just how safe their dividends are, with a little help from three crucial tools: The interest coverage ratio, or earnings before interest and taxes, divided by interest expense. The interest coverage ratio measures a company's ability to pay the interest on its debt. An interest coverage ratio less than 1.5 is questionable; a number less than one means that the company is not bringing in enough money to cover its interest expenses. The EPS payout ratio, or dividends per share divided by earnings per share. The EPS payout ratio measures the percentage of earnings that go toward paying the dividend. A ratio greater than 80% is worrisome. The FCF payout ratio, or dividends per share divided by free cash... more

9 Big-Dividend REITs Near 52-Week Lows

Here, I'll try to do the initial legwork for you. To prevent us from being inundated with scores of disparate companies, I'll conduct my search by industry. This will allow us to make some initial comparisons among semi-related companies. Today, let's look at mortgage REITs. Below, are the nine high-yielding mortgage REITs that are within 20% of their 52-week lows and above $1 billion in market cap.... more

Mid-Year Update: A Fund Manager's Top Dividend Stocks That Beat the Market

In an article earlier this year I highlighted the American Funds top dividend stock holdings across six of its largest funds. At the time the 10 stocks provided an average yield of 4.8%. Since the portfolio was created (1/31/2011) the picks have handily beaten the market. I will review the performance and note changes to the top 10 as of June 30, 2011. Also, while it doesn't meet the 3% minimum yield threshold, there is a significant increase in Microsoft (MSFT) holdings across the funds. Why American Funds ? The American Funds mutual fund family continues to be one of the dominant fund managers despite some recent performance issues. It claims seven of the world's largest 15 mutual funds with those funds holding over $600 billion in assets. Because American Funds now updates holdings... more

PerkinElmer Board Declares Quarterly Dividend

The Board of Directors of PerkinElmer, Inc. (NYSE: PKI), declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.07 per share of common stock on July 25, 2011. This dividend is payable on November 11, 2011, to all shareholders of record at the close of business on October 21, 2011.... more

15 High Dividend Energy Stocks

Energy sector stocks were among the best performers in 2010. IShares S&P Global Energy (IXC) gained 38.1% during the last 12 months, beating the S&P 500 (SPY) by a large margin. We prepared a list of 15 energy companies that pay fat dividend checks regularly. All companies on this list have a market capitalization above $900 million, P/E ratio lower than 28, and dividend yield of at least 4.5%. These 15 stocks returned 24.6% (including dividends) during the past 12 months, beating government bonds by a large margin. Stock Yield (%) Recent Price (USD) AmeriGas Partners, L.P. (APU) 6.4% 44.54 Buckeye Partners, L.P. (BPL) 6.1% 64.4 Calumet Specialty Products (CLMT) 7.8% 23.8 Eni S.p.A. (ADR) (E) 4.5% ... more

Forward Air Corporation Announces Authorization and Declaration of Quarterly Cash Dividend

Forward Air Corporation (Nasdaq: FWRD) today announced that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.07 per share of common stock. The dividend is payable to shareholders of record at the close of business on August 24, 2011 and is expected to be paid on September 8, 2011.... more

The All-Star Dividend Portfolio to Buy Today

This makes sense: dividend-paying stocks not only tend to outperform non-dividend paying stocks over the long-term -- by a whopping 10% to 4% margin, according to Ned Davis Research -- but they're also especially attractive during hard times. Noted investor and dividend expert Jeremy Siegel calls dividend stocks "bear market protectors and return accelerators." Their heightened yields tend to bolster portfolios, particularly during difficult times. But not all dividend stocks are created equal. To help you find the best ideas, I compiled a diverse group of high-quality dividend payers. Read on to see their names, and discover what makes them so attractive right now.... more

1 Year Later: EMLC Comes Through for Yield Hungry Investors

The ETF industry continues to expand at an impressive rate, with dozens of new products debuting every month and the size of the lineup quickly approaching the 1,300 mark. While each new month generally brings a number of new product launches, it also brings some important milestones for ETFs that have debuted in the past. While some investors have no problem jumping into newly-launched products, others may hesitate to put assets in products that don’t yet have a track record. For those investors facing explicit or self-imposed “age restrictions,” the first year of operations can give investors a good idea of the risk/return profile that can be expected. During the month of July, 25 various exchange traded funds will celebrate their first birthday. Many of the ETFs that launched... more