This High-Yield Dividend Portfolio Will Beat the Market

Last Tuesday, I invested my cold, hard cash into 10 high-yield dividend stocks that I believe will beat the market. After one week, let's look at the news from these companies, and see the results: Company Average Cost Shares Recent Price Total Value Return Altria (NYSE: MO) $24.86 40 $24.94 $997.60 0.32% Philip Morris (NYSE: PM) $61.83 16 $62.25 $996.00 0.68% National Grid (NYSE: NGG) $45.63 22 $46.39 $1,020.58 1.67% ... more

Dividend Report Card: Johnson & Johnson

In this series, we analyze financial metrics to begin answering the following questions about a company's dividend: Over time, has this company steadily increased its payouts? How sustainable is the dividend? Does the company have room to further increase the dividend? The Dividend Report Card wasn't designed as a buy or sell signal but rather as a tool to gauge the health of a company's dividend. For a full explanation of each category, click here for a tutorial.... more

Musings On Yield

When I closed my piece on Warren Buffett's Annual Letter, I ended with an important statement tat when I read it in the morning, I thought many would find it cryptic. Here it is: And much as I like Buffett and Ray DeVoe, I would like my readers to internalize that there is no such thing as yield. Yield is the decision of the company, but what you should ask is what is the increase in value of the company. Look for investments that increase your net worth the most. And I would add "With an eye toward safety." When I say there is no such thing as yield, I am overstating a matter to make a point. Will the debtor make the interest (or principal) payment? Will the company pay the regular dividend?  Will they increase it? Will you be able to hold the instrument so... more

Dividend Scan: NAFC, COST, TSS, USTR, XL, BKCC, JMP, WTI, NATL, PPDI

The US market shed its morning blues as ADP Employer Services presented an encouraging data on the country's job sector. Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.40 percent or 48.29 points to 12,106.31, and Nasdaq Composite gained 0.68 percent or 18.64 points to 2,756.05. The Standard and Poor's 500 was up 0.46 percent or 6.07 points to 1,312.40. Here are some notable dividend announcements made during the day. Nash-Finch Company (Nasdaq: NAFC) declared a regular cash dividend of 18 cents per share, payable on March 25, 2011 to shareholders of record on March 11, 2011. NAFC added 0.98 percent or $0.39 to $40.01. Costco Wholesale Corporation (Nasdaq: COST) slipped 0.14 percent or $0.03 to $73.59 despite raising its quarterly dividend to $0.205 from $0.18 per share. Total System... more

This Micro-Cap Dividend Play Deserves a Spot on Your Watch List

Company Overview: Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (Nasdaq: RMCF) is an international franchisor and confectionery manufacturer. The Company is engaged in the manufacture of a range of chocolate candies and other confectionery products. Note: Rocky Mountain Chocolate's fiscal year ends in February. So for example, FY 2010 ended in Feb. 2010. This past year is referred to as FY 2011 Fundamentals: Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is a small company, mostly comprising franchised retail stores and kiosks. Formed in 1982, and with a market cap of just 62 million, this is not the typical dividend paying company. I hesitate to even it call it that, since its dividend history is so short, paying its first full year of dividends in 2004 at 10 cents a share.The company began raising its dividend... more

These 11 Dividend Stocks Could Make You Wealthy

It seems the older I get the more I fight with my weight. I know how to lose weight. I have done it several times. The formula is not difficult, eat less and exercise more. My problem, like many others, is in the implementation. In much the same way, the formula to building wealth is rather simple: spend less than you earn and invest the difference. Once again implementation is where many people come up short. With the right focus and some positive feedback, building wealth can be much easier than shedding the spare tire around your mid-section. Here's how to do it… Fad Diets and Fad Investing Plans Rarely Work Forget about those "Make 534% On Every Trade" ads that you see on many financial websites. Real wealth is built with sweat equity and a sound financial plan. The only people... more

Yields Mixed As Investors Weigh Stocks And Crude Oil

Treasuries best performance since the last day of January came in the middle of the North American night as investors in Asia sold stocks and reached for the safe haven of government debt. As events unfolded in early morning Manhattan signs of economic strength pared gains for safe haven investments as investors once again rotate cautiously from bonds to stocks. Eurodollar futures ”“ The March 10-year note future reached 120-23 overnight sending yields to the lowest since January 31. In Asia equity prices were sinking in response to a sharp drop in U.S. equity values on Tuesday as crude oil soared and as protests turned uglier in the Middle East. A fear that the crisis has further to run remains a threat for market bulls. Just two days ahead of the latest non-farm payroll report,... more

The Most Promising Dividends in Conglomerates

Dividend payers deserve a berth in any long-term stock portfolio. But seemingly attractive dividend yields are not always as fetching as they may appear. Let's see which conglomerates offer the most promising dividends. 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.... more

5 Stocks Meeting My Entry Criteria for Dividend Investments

There are thousands of stocks traded on US and international markets. If one were to analyze in detail all of these stocks it would probably take a lifetime. Luckily, dividend growth investors have several lists they could use to aide in the search for quality dividend stocks.The first criterion that I use is that a company must have consistently raised distributions for at least ten years in a row. According to the dividend champions list, maintained by Dave Fish, there were 234 companies trading in the US which have managed to accomplish this. The reason behind requiring at least a decade of consistent dividend growth is to weed out all companies which are inconsistent in their dividend policies.The second criterion includes removing companies which trade at a price/earnings ratio of... more

Best in Breed Dividend Stocks: Core Holdings for the Long-Term Investor (Part 3)

In the previous two installments of "Best in Breed Dividend Stocks," (and here) we discussed what constitutes a best in breed dividend stock. Again, without regurgitating the entire article, the key investment metrics I focus on are: Consistent Long Term Dividend Payments, Dividend Growth Rate, a low Dividend Payout Ratio, above average Return on Equity, above average Sustainable Growth, and a Durable Competitive Advantage. In previous posts, we have focused on seven sectors: Consumer Staples: Pepsico Inc. (PEP) Energy: Chevron Corporation (CVX) Healthcare: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Industrial: Norfolk Southern Corporation (NSC) Services: McDonalds Corporation (MCD) Technology: Intel Corporation (INTC) Utilities: Southern Company (SO) In this installment, we will be examining... more