6 Potential High-Yield Dividend Kings for Q2

The economy has made its way from “firmer ground” to “moderate growth”. Companies are looking to pay out some of their recently built up cash hoards and investors are happy to take it in. Here are 6 companies that have the ability to become second quarter dividend kings. Pfizer (PFE) is still enjoying New York tax breaks, and now fancies itself a biopharmaceutical company. The giant produces useful, well-known products such as Lipitor, Celebrex and Viagra. PFE is also established in the vaccine niche which can provide a healthy, almost “set it and forget it” cash flow. On the dividend front PFE has an above average current yield of 3.9%, which is in line with other pharmaceutical companies. At first glance the consistent dividend growth appears to be... more

Yamana Gold Just Became 50% More Interesting For Dividend Investors

Income investors rejoice: The dividends I indicated would emerge from these miners of gold have materialized in short order, and Yamana revved-up the party this week with a bold 50% increase of its quarterly dividend (to reach an annualized yield of 1.5%). When 50% of sales revenue is converted to operating profit, as was the case for Yamana in the first quarter, returning some cash to shareholder seems a wholly reasonable response. A 1.5% yield may not sound like much of a windfall just yet, but it is 83% better than that of larger rival Goldcorp (NYSE: GG) , and I believe Goldcorp will now feel at least 20% more compelled to re-raise its own payout. After all, Newmont Mining (NYSE: NEM) recently upped its dividend by 33% to yield 1.5%, and Newmont boasts nowhere near the sort of... more

5 (Under the Radar) Dividend Stocks

There are some dividend stocks that every investor knows about. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Procter & Gamble (PG), and Coca-Cola (KO) are such stocks that have long histories of paying dividends. But there are also some high quality dividend stocks that many investors have never heard of. While I was looking through a list of stocks rated highly by my upcoming dividend rating system, I was struck by how many names were unfamiliar, and I decided to highlight several of them.Community Trust Bancorp (CTBI) Community Trust Bancorp, Inc. (CTBI) is a bank holding company. At December 31, 2009, CTBI owned all the capital stock of a commercial bank and one trust company, serving small and mid-sized communities in eastern, northeastern, central, and south central Kentucky and southern West Virginia.... more

5 High Yielding Dividend Utility Stock Inflation Hideouts

Inflation seems tamed as the core inflation rate is growing a mere 1.1 percent annually and consumer prices rose only 2.1 percent over the year according to the data out in February. Even so, inflows of cash have been gushing into funds that invest in customary inflation plays. These funds include Treasury inflation-protected securities, stocks, and commodities. Morningstar's Editorial Director Kevin McDevitt, CFA, stated (pdf): "Long-term flows roared back in January with nearly $30 billion in estimated inflows, reversing December's $10.6 billion outflow. U.S. Stock funds led the surge with nearly $16 billion in inflows, with U.S. Stock exchange-traded funds collecting another $10 billion. This is the biggest haul for open-end U.S. Stock funds since February 2006 and the best January... more

The Most Promising Dividends in Gold

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

5 Dividend-Paying Utility Stocks to Consider

For those of you who read my Dividend Portfolio Analysis, one of the things you may have noticed is that I currently only own one utility company: Southern Company (SO). Southern Company has been raising dividends for 10 years now, has been an excellent part of my portfolio, and I am very optimistic about its future. Furthermore, SO was one of the few companies I call "The Original Six." To provide a brief background to my dividend investing days before DividendPartisan, the very first purchase for my Income Portfolio was near the beginning of 2010 of six individual stocks, SO being one of them. The other originals were: Abbott (ABT), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Paychex (PAYX), Pepsi (PEP), and Waste Management (WM). This initial mix of six provided me a relatively diverse foundation to... more

Dividend Scan: M, INTC, NI, TKR, QUAD, MMM, NNI, PROV, HNI

Despite the U.S. market trading in red, several companies declared their future dividend plans. Some notable dividend payers are discussed here. Macy's Inc. (NYSE: M) doubled its quarterly dividend to 10 cents per share, payable on July 1, 2011 to shareholders of record on June 15, 2011. Shares gained 7.29 percent, or $1.97, to trade at $28.29. Shares of Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC) added 2.28 percent, or 53 cents, to trade at $23.56 as it raised its quarterly dividend by 16 percent to 21 cents per share. Shares of NiSource Inc. (NYSE: NI) fell 0.34 percent, or 7 cents, to trade at $20.24 despite declaring a quarterly common dividend of 23 cents per share. The dividend is payable on August 19, 2011 to shareholders of record on July 29, 2011. Timken Co. (NYSE: TKR) declared a... more

Australian Currency: G.E. Capital Bond 5.15% Yield For Feb.2012 Mat: This Week’s Best Bond

G.E. Capital Australian Dollar denominated bonds offer about 5 times the current income of similar very short US denominated bonds, plus providing diversification away from a heavily debt burdened US economy to one of the World's more fiscally conservative countries - Australia.
Current US Debt woes... more

7 Stocks in the Dividend Sweet Spot

Becoming a solid dividend stock doesn't happen automatically. Companies have to commit to adopting the mind-set of paying a consistent and growing dividend before they ever see it come to fruition. But with all sorts of corporate excess running rampant, investors now recognize that the way of thinking about corporate capital that comes from paying a dividend also helps reinforce the responsibility that management teams have in safeguarding shareholder assets. Too much cash on their handsYesterday's news of Microsoft buying Skype is only the latest example of the ongoing battle between the paradigms of dividend income versus internal growth. Microsoft argues that even a lofty $8.5 billion price tag for Skype isn't too much, given the twin goals of incorporating the company into its suite... more

Dividends Made in Germany: A Review of Payouts of the DAX Index

In Germany, the time between April and June is when publicly listed companies usually hold their annual general meetings. Unlike in the United States or other countries, the dividend payment of German stock companies is inherently linked to their annual general meeting. The AGM approves a dividend payout, the stock goes ex-dividend the day after the general meeting, and usually the dividend is credited to accounts on the same day or the next. There are no such things as quarterly or semi-annual dividends. This means that each year, between April and June, German companies open up their coffers to shareholders for a more or less large one-time payment. For the German blue chip index, the DAX-30, this payment is set to reach nearly 26 billion Euros this year, a sum nearly 30% higher than... more