United Financial Bancorp (UBNK) Posts Stronger Q2 EPS; Declares $0.08 Quarterly Dividend; 2.3% Yield

United Financial Bancorp (Nasdaq: UBNK) reports Q2 EPS of $0.19, versus $0.04 reported for the same period a year ago. The Company also announced a 14% increase in its quarterly cash dividend to $0.08 per share, $0.32 annualized. The dividend is payable on August 27, 2010 to shareholders of record as of August 6, 2010. The ex-dividend date is August 4, 2010. Yield on the dividend is 2.3%.... more

13 Stocks Growing Their Cash Dividends

Dividend growth investing in its classic form focuses on identifying solid companies with a long record of growing their dividends each year; and an expectation that they will continue to do so into the future. The focus is not solely on yield but a combination of yield and dividend growth. Often it is the lower yield, higher growth, security that will provide the best return over time.... more

Walgreen: Dividend Stock Analysis

Walgreen Co (WBA) is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2008 sales of $59 billion. The company operates 6,902 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The company is member of the S&P 500 and was a recent addition to the S&P Dividend Aristocrats index. Walgreen Co has paid dividends for more than 76 years and consistently increased payments to common shareholders every year for 35 years. On July 14, the company raised distributions by 27.30% to 17.50 cents/share. Over the past decade this dividend stock has delivered a negative annual average total return of 1.10% to its shareholders. The stock is trading at the same levels it was changing hands a decade ago.... more

Three Stocks Going Ex-Dividend Next Week

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

A Big Quarter for Bank Stocks: Here's What to Expect

All of the big banks announce earnings over the next week, with JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) kicking things off tomorrow. What should you expect?... more

Making the Most of Your Dividends

If you’ve been investing for a while, you probably know these three things about dividends: Seeking out stocks that pay significant dividends can help make you rich. Choosing dividend-paying companies that have increased their dividend payouts significantly in the past is even better. Dividend yields rise when stock prices fall, and vice versa. (The dividend yield is calculated by dividing a company’s annual dividend by its current stock price. It’s a simple fraction, with the dividend on top and the stock price on the bottom. So, as the stock price falls, the yield becomes bigger, and as the price rises, the yield shrinks.) We may know these things, but we don’t always consider them as a whole. We may get excited by a stock with a steep dividend yield, for example, but... more

Meet the Dividend Achievers

If you’re looking for dividend-paying stocks, you need to know the Dividend Achievers. Created by Mergent and now overseen by Indxis, several indexes track companies that qualify as "Dividend Achievers" -- an elite group of roughly 300 businesses that have increased their dividends annually over the past decade, and that meet certain liquidity requirements.... more

Chubb: Solid Choice for Dividend Investors

Insurance companies are difficult to understand, especially for value investors who want consistent growth. Growth from one year to the next is impossible to predict with accuracy. They have investment income which varies substantially and catastrophe expenses fluctuate wildly from one year to the next. Even written premiums do not grow consistently. Therefore it is necessary to value these companies based on long term records. Chubb (CB), a Dividend Aristocrat, was founded in 1882 in New York for marine underwriting business. Now it sells insurance around the world with 24% of premiums coming from outside the US. Last week CB was granted approval to open its 2nd China office in Nanjing (the first was opened 10 years ago). Chubb is one of the largest property and casualty insurance in the... more

IDACORP (IDA) Declares $0.30 Quarterly Dividend; 3.4% Yield

IDACORP, Inc. (NYSE: IDA) today declared a common stock dividend of $0.30 per share, $1.20 annualized. The dividend is payable August 30, 2010 to holders of record at the close of business on August 5, 2010. The ex-dividend date is August 3, 2010. Yield on the dividend is 3.4%.... more

Reynolds American (RAI) Declares $0.90 Quarterly Dividend; 6.5% Yield

Reynolds American Inc. (NYSE: RAI) today announced a quarterly cash dividend on the company's common shares of $0.90 per share, $3.60 annualized. The dividend will be payable on October 1, 2010, to shareholders of record on September 10, 2010. The ex-dividend date is September 8, 2010. Yield on the dividend is 6.5%.... more