Is Trinity Industries' Dividend 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 1 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

Is Lorillard's Dividend 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 1 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

Dividend Scan: SFI, NLY, VTR, ALL, YDNT, FBSS, NDSN, AMSWA

Amidst the negative movement of the US stock indexes, several companies declared their future dividend plans. Some notable dividend payers are discussed here. iStar Financial Inc. (NYSE: SFI) announced a  quarterly dividend of 50 cents per share, payable on June 15,  2011 to shareholders of record on June 1, 2011. Shares lost 3.54 percent or 30 cents to trade at $8.05. Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE: NLY) declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.4921 per share, payable on June 30, 2011 to shareholders of record on June 1, 2011. Shares gained 0.14 percent or 2 cents to trade at $17.78. Ventas Inc. (NYSE: VTR) announced a regular quarterly dividend of $0.575 per share, payable on June 30, 2011 to shareholders of record on June 10, 2011. Shares added 0.17 percent or 9 cents... more

Is Apache's Dividend 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

Do You Know Where Your Dividends Come From?

If you think about it, a lot of long-term investors have exposure to the SPDR Trust (NYSE: SPY) , through a 401(k), a mutual fund, or our own investing portfolios. The SPDR Trust is an exchange-traded fund that tracks the S&P 500 and essentially allows investors to mirror the returns of the market while pocketing a current annual dividend of 1.7%. If you had asked me last week which sectors contributed the most to that dividend yield within the past decade, I would have assuredly answered the utility and financial sectors -- and I would have been brutally wrong! Here's where your dividends come fromIn actuality, as Barron's recently pointed out, out of the 10 major sectors within the past decade, financials have delivered the lowest overall yield at 1.01%. I would have been correct in... more

Is FLIR Systems' Dividend 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 1 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 flow per... more

Playing Defense With Dividends: Utility Stocks Yielding Over 5.0%

Protecting the Quarterback Let's be honest, there is nothing sexy about utility stocks. They don't need the spotlight or the glory. But when they get called upon, they step in and do their job ... no questions asked. They are humble and reliable. In a way, utility stocks are like offensive linemen in football. The O-linemen rarely make the headlines or box scores, yet they are arguably the most important players on the field when the game is on the line. What could be more important than protecting the quarterback? The Unsung Heros of Your Portfolio The S&P Select Utility SPDR (XLU) has been up 18 of the past 23 trading sessions and has outperformed the S&P 500 Index (SPY) by 6.54% over this time period (see price ratio chart below). Historically, when defensive stocks lead the... more

Highest-Yielding Energy Stocks (You Might Actually Want to Buy)

What's more, reinvesting dividends acts as a "bear-market protector and return accelerator," according to Siegel. The extra shares purchased and accumulated at higher dividend yields during down periods act as a protector in falling markets, and these extra shares rising in value turn into a "return accelerator" when prices rise. As the recent economic crisis illustrated all too well, however, you can't buy just any high-yielding stock. Dividends that get cut or suspended entirely can wreak havoc on a stock price -- and thus, your portfolio.... more

12 Oversold Stocks With Strong Dividend Coverage

A company’s dividend is only as reliable as the company’s cash flows from which they’re paid. When choosing an income investment, it is important to check dividend sustainability by looking at the strength of cash flows. With that in mind, we constructed a list of oversold stocks that have impressive dividend coverage. We started with a universe of about 120 companies with RSI(14) below 40. We then calculated trailing 12-month (TTM) operating cash flow per share, and TTM levered free cash flow per share, and identified those with the best dividend coverage. Do you trust these dividends to continue? Use this list as a starting-off point for your own analysis. List sorted by operating cash flow per share per $1 of dividend per share.1. Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC): Information... more

Is Cliffs Natural Resources' Dividend 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