7 Dividend Stocks Increasing Cash Payouts

When selecting income investments, the three most important questions to answer are : 1) Is the investment increasing its dividend each year, 2) Is the increase likely to continue into the future and 3) Are you being compensated for the risk you are taking? When you answer yes to all three of the questions, you just might have found an excellent income investment.

Below are seven dividend stocks that recently rewarded their shareholders with increased cash dividends:

Sanderson Farms (SAFM) is an integrated poultry processing company that produces, processes, markets and distributes fresh and frozen chicken products in the United States. Recently, the company increased its quarterly dividend 7.1% to $0.15/share. The dividend is payable October 20, 2009, to stockholders of record on October 6, 2009. The current yield based on the new dividend is 1.59%.

ConAgra (CAG) is one of the largest packaged food processors in the U.S. This past week, the company raised its quarterly dividend 5% to $0.20/share. The dividend will be paid on Dec. 1, 2009, to stockholders of record at the close of business on Oct. 30, 2009. The current yield based on the new dividend is 3.69%.

Prospect Capital (PSEC) is a financial services company that primarily lends to and invests in middle market privately-held companies. Monday, the company jumped its quarterly dividend to $0.4075/share, up from $0.40625/share. This was the 20th consecutive quarterly increase. The dividend will be paid Monday, October 19, 2009 to shareholder of record Thursday, October 8, 2009. The payment date is Monday, October 19, 2009. The current yield based on the new dividend is 15.22%.

Calavo Growers (CVGW) procures and markets avocados and other perishable commodities and prepares and distributes processed avocado products. On Monday, the company increased its quarterly dividend 43% to $0.50/Share. The current yield based on the new dividend is 2.63%.

Atlantic Tele-Network (ATNI) provides wireless and wireline telecommunications services in the Caribbean and North America. Earlier this week, the company bumped its quarterly dividend 11% to $0.20/share. The dividend is payable on October 15, 2009 to stockholders of record as of October 5, 2009. The current yield based on the new dividend is 1.50%.

CLARCOR (CLC) is a diversified marketer and manufacturer of mobile and industrial filtration products and consumer and industrial packaging products. Thursday, the company boosted its quarterly dividend by 8.3% to $0.0975/share. The dividend is payable October 23, 2009 to shareholders of record October 9, 2009. CLC is a Dividend Achiever and has increased its dividend for 26 consecutive years. The current yield based on the new dividend is 1.28%.

Accenture (ACN) is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Thursday, it announced a 50% increase in its annual dividend to $0.75/share.The dividend is payable on Nov. 16, 2009. The current yield based on the new dividend is 2.05%.

Fortunately, it is now very easy to find companies committed to increasing their dividends each year. For a list of stocks with a long string of consecutive dividend increases, see this list.

Full Disclosure: No position in the aforementioned stocks. See a list of all my income holdings here.

Comments

[Freya]

On PSEC, I believe it goes Ex-div. 10/06, that was the initial press release. It may have been corrected later but better to be safe than sorry.

2009 Oct 02 09:58 AM

[Freya]

That ex-div. date on PSEC still reads 10-06-2009. I own 8,000 shares in my 801K avg cost $10. My group has 1,600 shares as far as SA is concerned is around $10.20.

I follow it rather closely. The companies it invests in?

Primarily Debt and equity in the Energy Sector. Think Energy is going down? Don't buy PSEC.

2009 Oct 02 10:59 AM

[Ricard]

"Fortunately, it is now very easy to find companies committed to increasing their dividends each year. For a list of stocks with a long string of consecutive dividend increases, see this list."

That's a very interesting bullish statement. It does seem to fly in the face of macro circumstances, unless the point is that it is relatively easier compared to September of last year.

2009 Oct 02 11:58 AM

[Shishir Nigam]

Accenture did just report announce below expectations earnings, which puts some doubt in my mind about the company. Though they do have a very diverse revenue base.

Sysco (SYY) is also a great company to consider as a long-term purchase, it has a strong balance sheet and operates in a conservative sector. It provides a relatively healthy dividend yield and dividends that the company has been raising for a many years now.

Another good dividend stock to look at is Caterpillar (CAT). It's one of the largest manufacturers of construction equipment and is benefiting from the increase in government expenditures around the world, a lot of which are being directed towards infrastructure development! It also sports a very good dividend yield right now, will get even better if purchased at a slight dip that should be coming up.

For more analysis, check out my blog: youngandinvested.com

2009 Oct 02 01:27 PM

[jculley]

Every time I look at SYY for an investment, I love the fundamentals. But one thing haunts me, the rising price of oil. SYY would have gotten crushed if oil prices remained where they were last summer, the dividend long gone. Oil prices will continue to rise and the corresponding rise in gas prices will outpace their ability to raise their rates.

That is the one thing that keeps me out of SYY.

2009 Oct 02 01:34 PM

[Jim P. Smith]

I've had some success with SYY as well, though jculley's point is well taken. Holding on for a dividend is only a good idea when you expect the dividend to be paid. Not a pretty chart when the dividend dries up.

2009 Oct 02 02:55 PM

[ceattlechris]

Publically traded Muni's (like MEN, MQY) pay 6-7% (tax free!) and have been fairly stable income producers for me.

2009 Oct 02 08:05 PM

[Rich S]

Why recommend these totally anemic dividend plays (2-3%?)when there are dozens at higher yield plys with no more or less risk than say the ag. companies recommended. Both Annaly Capital and Hatteras Fin. are paying over 15% and recently raised their dividends (these are the guys who play the spreads on Fannie and Freddie guaranteed paper). Or, you can go muni with Eaton Vance Insured Muni bond fund which also raised its dividend 5% so the yield is now about 6.5% tax exempt. Or, foreign bond funds paying 8.5% like MIN-geez, I could on forever and I don't put myself out there as some sort of dividend expert.

2009 Oct 03 09:21 AM

[petyaczar]

IMO.. why mess around with 1-2% dividend yields? Try MO, PM, VZ, AT&T with strong cash flows and secure dividend yields of 6-7+%.

2009 Oct 03 10:14 AM

[tipalia]

any particlar reasons why you don t have ACN on your list ? the only reason I am asking this question is because you included it in your article .

2009 Oct 03 10:16 AM

[Ricard]

These reports are just 'updates' on stocks on D4L's list that have just raised dividends, and have consistently done so in the past. He also makes recommendations on 'winners' that exceed the payouts you see here.


On Oct 03 10:14 AM petyaczar wrote:

> IMO.. why mess around with 1-2% dividend yields? Try MO, PM, VZ,
> AT&T with strong cash flows and secure dividend yields of 6-7+%.

2009 Oct 03 10:36 AM

[tresspass]

Timely article for the conservative " lay low in the fox hole " investor. These are, indeed, tumultuous times. Like a few mentioned above there are slightly ( at least in my playbook ) more aggressive dividend yielders with the unique virtue of obtaining some significant cap gains. We know who those culprits are. I'll name my own gang--just about every health care REIT ( usually 7%+ and PPS gradually growing---the baby boomers are on your side, here ); the niche players who are playing aggressively at the right time---blood pouring in the streets and all that---that's PSEC and a few mentioned by other posters.

Point being, it seems that though we're climbing out of the whole slowly, WE ARE CLIMBING OUT OF IT; imo, the best time to buy equities in the right sectors like the one's I mentioned above ( that's my call---do your own DD, duh. ) Here you have both cap gains and a steady income while waiting. Last week was an over reaction based on news we already knew was baked in ( the drum beat of 10% unemployment is a mantra we've been hearing for months---why the surprise; moreover, employment is the very last data point to rise in a recovery ). Chindia and emerging economies and even good 'ol Europe is flagging their recessions are over and are showing slow to moderate growth--well, it's a lot sooner than anybody thought.

I'm done. We're all pretty much astute folks around here--you can all extrapolate on your own.

tresspass

2009 Oct 03 12:22 PM

[jr007]

Dividends beat, potential appreciation, in a stock every time, especially when excellent company executives, hog all the cash with salary, bonus and stock options.

2009 Oct 03 12:36 PM

[a. palmer jr.]

I agree with the ones above who say "why mess with 2 or 3 percent when you can have more with the same risk". All stocks have some risk, some more than others, but if you want 2% with little risk, put your money in the bank.

2009 Oct 03 01:04 PM

[David Van Knapp]

There are lots of ways to "play" dividends. I like to aim for a stock that can achieve a 10% yield on my cost within 10 years, and which is also as safe as I can find with respect to both its price stability value and its likelihood of ever-increasing dividends. I'm not looking to trade these things very often.

Some of the high yielders (8% and up) fail the safety test, but of course that is a judgement and it is up to you. Do your own analysis, or maybe you have a shorter time frame and don't care. Stocks that are yielding below about 3% when you buy them fail the 10% goal without astonomical, unrealistic annual dividend increases.

Most of the stocks that meet all the criteria usually are paying about 3%-7% at the time you buy them. Works for me. Of course, do your own due diligence.

2009 Oct 03 01:49 PM

[TLassen]

Don't usually respond to comments like yours. Div4life writes articles that are well researched, articulate and informative. Most of us "brain-dead' followers, read, analyze and use these articles as part of our overall continuing education.

Took the time to read some of your other comments you have posted. Interesting to say the least. Suggest you contribute to SA by writing an article yourself.

I am sure on SA there are many potential "followers' that will agree with your political, economic and investment views.


On Oct 03 01:46 PM dragonpaw wrote:

> Crowing about 2-3% dividend payouts and pushing this crap as though
> this were the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel. Who are
> your "followers"; the financially brain-dead?

2009 Oct 03 02:15 PM

[Freya]

TLassen, saved me some time, thanks.

My view has been to try to take into account potential pitfalls by buying these High Yielders with the expectation that the dividend could be cut in Half.

I'm quite willing to receive an 8% yield on my money hence PSEC. But that doesn't mean I'm complacent either. I made that mistake with the CanRoys last Year.

2009 Oct 03 03:27 PM

[Max Well]

With Venezuela Gov Bonds you can get returns from 12 to 18% from a country with a public debt as % of GDP of 18.1%.
It has never defaulted, has 33B $ in foreign currencies and the world 2d oil reserve.
Of course you must deal with Chavez, but as they say here:
"The best country in the world to invest is Venezuela without Chavez
And the second best country in the world to invest is Venezuela with Chavez"
I f you still don't like it may be China is the place to be!
buttonwood.economist.c...
Best Regards!

2009 Oct 03 06:59 PM

[Joe Duggins]

You all know what dividends are: Cash payments by companies to their shareholders out of company profits. Paying dividends is one of the four principal things that a company can do with its profits. The other three are (1) building a war chest, (2) reinvesting in the company (organically or by making acquisitions), and (3) buying back its own shares.

Dividend yield is a simple calculation from two pieces of information: Total dividends over the past twelve months divided by the stock's current price. So if Dividend Co. pays $1-per-share annual dividend, and today's price is $40, its current yield is 1/40, or 2.5%. Every stock's current yield is readily available on every financial Web site and in the newspaper.

Current yields change daily. The yield changes any time either of its two components changes. Most dividends are paid quarterly, so most changes in that piece--the annual dividend--happen just four times per year.

But the stock's price changes continually whenever the market is open. If Dividend Co.'s price goes up to $41 today, its current yield drops to 2.4% (1/41). Just for a benchmark, as I write this, the current yield of the average stock in the S&P 500 is 2.6%. Companies in certain sectors--such as finance and energy--have become known for paying healthy dividends. Other sectors--such as technology--generally pay little if any.

So can dividend yields help you find bargains? Well, there is an entire investment strategy called Dogs of the Dow based on the proposition that the highest-yielding stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average at any given time represent the best bargains. The theory, popularized by Michael O'Higgins in 1991, is that large, well-established companies (such as those in the Dow) do not alter their dividend payout policies very much, so therefore their dividends reflect management's long-term outlook for the company. That is, they can send some money to shareholders rather than plow every cent back into the company.

Therefore, if the yield is high, it must be because the price is "low" (compared to the stock's real value), and so the stock is a bargain whose price is likely to rise. A popular technique is to invest in the ten highest-yielding Dow stocks (the "Dogs"), hold them for a year, then sell them and buy the new ten highest yielding stocks. Repeat annually. A website devoted to this strategy claims that the strategy has generally outperformed the Dow itself over many years by several percentage points.
----------------------...
Money without intelligence is like a car without a road.
www.intelligentinvesti...

2009 Oct 04 01:28 AM

[Freya]

I'm getting 4% on MCD and 8% on MO. I'm willing to take 4% from MCD because of their Foreign growth, foreign currency trade. MO, well, lets say more than half the planet is lighting up. And will do so for a long long time.

PSEC is not a "company" per se, it invests in other companies, usually private ones. I believe the payout started at 10 cents a share 5 years ago. When I saw that management had managed to incrementally increase payouts for 18 qtrs in a row even though it had lost more than 50% in market cap I got interested. When it raised it slighthly for the 19th straight qrtr., I jumped in with both feet and an arm. With oil on the rise and a 20 qrtr div. hike in these "Not the Best of Times", I'm in it "Hook, Line and Sinker".

If it takes a hit after it goes Ex-div. by more than the ex-div amount, I'll take a look whether tying up more money for 3 months is worth the difference.

2009 Oct 04 05:12 AM