20 High Yield, Highly Profitable Stocks

The following is a list of high yield dividend stocks. All of the companies mentioned below have been more profitable than their competitors over the last five years, when comparing gross and net profit margins. This list might offer an interesting starting point to a dividend investor.... more

World Wrestling Entertainment's Disappointing Earnings Guidance Is Bad News for Its Dividend

World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) dropped 7% Monday due to earnings guidance well below expectations (see earnings projections here). It said earnings will be between $.08 and $.10 a share on Feb. 10, much less than analysts' expectations of $.16 a share. Originally, the stock had dropped over 14%, but then quickly recovered half its losses.... more

Expect Another Special Dividend From Limited Brands

I've been looking for companies that reward their shareholders. Limited Brands (LTD) handed out two special dividends to shareholders in 2010, totaling $4 a share. That caught my eye. Up until 2010, LTD had sent the same 15 cents to investors for each of the last 24 quarters; they hadn't dropped a special dividend since 2004. Is this the start of a more "special" relationship with investors or merely a one-time largesse? For those unfamiliar with LTD, the company is composed of Victoria's Secret, Bath and Body Works, and La Scenza (currently a smaller portion of the business that sells overseas). LTD has the prerequisites needed to be mega shareholder friendly: a big insider position and bountiful cash generation. LTD has a whopping 17% insider holdings. I find companies with large... more

Seven Stocks Going Ex-Dividend First Week of February

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends'. This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets. In flat or choppy markets, you have to be extremely careful. In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable Excel list of the stocks going ex dividend during the next week or two (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show... more

Dividend Report Card: Unilever

In the dividend report card 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? For a full explanation of each category, click here for a tutorial.... more

This Millennium's 15 Best Dividend Stocks

I'm always on the lookout for the next home run stock. At the end of each year, I like looking back to see what I can learn from the best and worst performing stocks over the long term. I make sure to key in on dividend stocks as they have a history of outperforming the market.... more

Better Buy: Big Dividends or Fast-Growing Dividends?

A couple of my fellow Fools seem to have a bit of a disagreement. In his article "The Most Outstanding Dividend Portfolio I Know," Jeremy Phillips said he believes "dividend growth, much more than current yield, is critical to a successful dividend portfolio." Meanwhile, in his article "The Outstanding Dividend Stock I'm Buying Now," Jim Royal countered, "I think a high current and sustainable yield is every bit as important as growth."... more

Executive Optimism: 5 Dividend Champions Being Snapped Up by Insiders

In recessions past, economies have taken a V-shaped path toward recovery, where the GDP bounces back at a rate of somewhere between 6% and 14% growth. But this time around, the economy lacks the spring in its step of comebacks past, as we tread water at a projected 3% GDP growth rate in 2011. With unemployment expected to remain sluggish indefinitely, MFS investment officer and portfolio manager Erik Weisman predicts a "paradigm shift," bringing dramatic fluctuations from inflation to deflation, and even a possible return to the gold standard. And as a result, the stock market will continue toward becoming entirely unlinked from the GDP.... more

Penn Virginia GP (PVG) Aprpoves $0.39 Per Share Quarterly Cash Dividend - Annual Yield 6.00%

The Board of Directors of PVG GP, LLC, the general partner of Penn Virginia GP Holdings, L.P. (NYSE: PVG), today declared a quarterly cash distribution of $0.39 per unit. This distribution, which equates to $1.56 per unit on an annualized basis, remains unchanged from the distribution paid with respect to the prior quarter. The quarterly distribution covers the period October 1 through December 31, 2010, and is payable on February 22, 2011 to unitholders of record on February 15, 2011.... more

Dividend Capture: Decrease Volatility and Increase Existing Holdings Cash Flow

Welcome back...Dividend Capture! Individuals concerned with ongoing high levels of volatility in the market should consider a strategy known as Dividend Capture, which was pioneered by Japanese insurance companies back in the early 1980’s. At that time, Japanese law required life insurers to pay policy holders from current income rather than capital gains. This is why the insurers were so eager for dividends. The Ministry gradually modified the law and insurers can now include some capital gains in their payments. Due to the commission structure at most American brokerage firms, Dividend Capture never really caught on in the U.S. In 1980, trading nine million shares of stock on the NYSE was too expensive for the relatively minor dividend payback. Flash forward to 2010. With the advent... more