Value Opportunity With Tootsie Roll Industries With a 3% Dividend Yield

Tootsie Roll Industries (TR) has been engaged in the manufacture and sale of confectionary products for 113 years and operates a candy portfolio that includes the popular brands Tootsie Roll, Tootsie Pop, Junior Mints, and Mason Dots. Led by the husband and wife team of Melvin and Ellen Gordon, who control 60% of the company’s voting power, Tootsie Roll employs 2,200 associates and distributes its products primarily across North America.In fact, Melvin Gordon is a very robust ninety year old who has served as the company’s Chairman since 1962. Moreover, this year represents the sixty-eighth consecutive year the company has paid cash dividends and the forty-sixth consecutive year that a stock dividend was distributed. A year ago, the company also purchased 937,956 shares of common... more

McDonald's, Lockheed Martin Among Several Solid Companies Raising Dividends

In the world of investing, there are thousands of companies that pay dividends. While companies do not have any control on their stock prices, they do have full control over the rate and frequency of dividend distributions that they pay to shareholders. Some of the strongest companies in the world, also happen to generate a lot in excess cashflow. As a result they have managed to increase distributions consistently like clockwork for many years.One such company is McDonald’s Corporation (MCD), which together with its subsidiaries, operates as a worldwide food service retailer. Over the past week the company raised its dividend by 11% to 61 cents/share. This was the 34th consecutive year of dividend increases for the company, which is a member of the elite Dividend Aristocrats index.... more

The Case for Medtronic: Low P/E, 2.7% Dividend Yield, Strong Dividend Growth

Summary -Medtronic Inc. (MDT), is a global medical technology company. -Five year average revenue growth: 9% -Five year average earnings growth: 11% -Five year dividend growth: 19% -Current dividend yield: 2.70% -I find the company stock attractive at the current price, with a P/E of under 11.... more

Ingles Markets (MKTA) Declares $0.165 Quarterly Dividend; 4% Yield

Ingles Markets, Incorporated (Nasdaq: IMKTA) today announced that its Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.165 per share on all its Class A Common Stock, $0.66 annualized. The dividend will be paid on or about October 21, 2010, to all shareholders of record on October 7, 2010. The ex-dividend date is October 5, 2010. Yield on the dividend is 4.0%.... more

Epiq Systems (EPIQ) Declares $0.035 Quarterly Dividend; 1.1% Yield

Epiq Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: EPIQ) has approved a cash dividend of $0.035 per common share, $0.14 annualized. The quarterly dividend will be payable November 18, 2010, to shareowners of record at the close of business on October 28, 2010. The ex-dividend date is October 26, 2010. Yield on the dividend is 1.1%.... more

Ameriana Bancorp (ASBI) Declares $0.01 Quarterly Dividend; 1% Yield

Ameriana Bancorp (Nasdaq: ASBI), today announced that the Company's Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.01 per share, $0.04 annualized. The quarterly dividend is payable on October 29, 2010, to shareholders of record as of October 8, 2010. The ex-dividend date is October 6, 2010. Yield on the dividend is 1.0%.... more

Cal-Maine Foods (CALM) Tops Q1 EPS by 20c, Announces $0.67/Sh Qtr Dividend

Cal-Maine Foods (Nasdaq: CALM) reports Q1 EPS of $0.20, 26 cents better than the analyst estimate of ($0.06). Revenue for the quarter was $190.4 million, which compares to the estimate of $191.97 million. Cal-Maine also announced a Q1 cash dividend of approximately $0.067 per share to holders of its common and Class A common stock. The amount paid could vary slightly based on the amount of outstanding shares on the record date. The dividend is payable November 11, 2010, to shareholders of record on October 27, 2010. The ex-dividend date is October 25.... more

Four Stocks Going Ex-Dividend First Week of October

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, your 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. The list contains many dividend paying companies, all with market caps... more

26 Conservative Dividend Stocks That Should Beat Bonds

There has been a lot of debate recently about the implications of "cheap dividend payers." I first wrote about the gift the market was offering this summer (maybe a bit early), arguing that Dividend Payers are likely to beat Bonds. I gave some scenario analysis that showed over longer time-frames, Dividend Payers had very little chance of underperforming intermediate-term bonds. Here is the graphic I shared at the time (click to enlarge):... more

Dividend Growth Stocks You Need

Academic evidence shows that dividend stocks outperform. But companies that have raised their dividends do especially well -- and companies that are about to raise their dividends do better still. Find these the hard way, by sweating through financial statements and guessing who'll raise next, or take Motley Fool Income Investor advisor James Early's suggestion: Simply find consistent raisers and latch on. Your options, Fool, are many: Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), 3M (NYSE: MMM), and Cincinnati Financial (Nasdaq: CINF) have raised payouts for 50 years or more. A newer -- but still consistent -- company is Magellan Midstream Partners (NYSE: MMP).... more