Merry Christmas 2020

On this special day...

Harvest the Fruit

The mango is native to Southern and Southeast Asia, but also grows in Central and South America, Africa, and the Arabian Peninsula. Mango trees will settle into a cropping pattern by the third year after planting and reach peak production in six to eight years. Seedling trees take a year longer to come into production. The tree is long-lived with some specimens known to be over 300 years old and still producing fruit.

Dividend Increase: Companies Creating Real Wealth With Higher Cash Dividends

A stock dividend, also known as a "scrip dividend", is a dividend payment made with stock instead of cash. Sometimes when companies are tight on cash, they will declare and pay a stock dividend in lieu of a cash dividend. Most shareholders feel like they are getting something. But are they really? In short, a stock dividend is nothing more than a glorified stock split. At the end of the process, the shareholder has more shares that are worth less. Like a stock split, you can not create value by issuing paper and getting nothing in exchange.

Below are several select companies that recently decided to create real value for their shareholders by raising their cash dividends:

Kellogg Company (K) Dividend Stock Analysis

Linked here is a detailed quantitative analysis of Kellogg Company (K). Below are some highlights from the above linked analysis:

Company Description: Kellogg Company is a leading producer of ready-to-eat cereal also sells snack and convenience foods such as cookies, crackers, potato chips, cereal bars, fruit snacks and frozen waffles.

4 Dividend Stocks With A 20% Yield In 20 Years

I know very little about hockey, but I have always loved this quote:

I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been."
- Wayne Gretzky

It can be applied to so many things in life, including investing in Dividend Growth Stocks. Just as Gretzky has a vision as to where the puck is going, investors need to have a similar vision, and not get caught up on short-sighted distractions.

Dividend Increases: Stocks Using Real Cash To Pay Higher Dividends

You can’t spend earnings! At first glance, this seems like an odd statement, possibly even incorrect. However, it is not only correct, but an important axiom for all types of investors. Through fraud and manipulation financial statements can be made to look quite impressive, but the cash that arrives in your brokerage account is real.

An increasing cash dividend keeps pressure on management to ensure the company is well run. If there are too many missteps, eventually the dividend will slip. Here are several stocks where management recently met the challenge by raising their cash dividends:

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (ITW) Dividend Stock Analysis

Linked here is a detailed quantitative analysis of Illinois Tool Works Inc. (ITW). Below are some highlights from the above linked analysis:

Company Description: Illinois Tool Works Inc. is a diversified manufacturer that operates a portfolio of 60 business units that serve industrial and consumer markets globally.

Turbo Charge Your Portfolio With Reinvested Dividends

It is well-documented that a significant portion of the historical equity returns are a result of reinvested dividends. In Triumph of the Optimists: 101 Years of Global Investment Returns (2002), the authors looked at equity returns from capital gains and dividends from 1900 to 2000. They determined that performance in any given year was driven by capital appreciation, but long-term returns were largely the result of reinvested dividends. Looking at 101 years of data in the U.S. and U.K., they found that a market-oriented portfolio with dividends reinvested would have generated nearly 85 times the wealth of the same portfolio relying solely on capital gains.

Dividend Increases: These Stocks Are Turbo-Charging Returns With Increasing Dividends

"Turbo Charge Your Portfolio With Reinvested Dividends"
Dividend Increases: These Stocks Are Turbo-Charging Returns With Increasing Dividends

It is a well-documented fact that a significant portion of the historical equity returns are a result of reinvested dividends. In Triumph of the Optimists: 101 Years of Global Investment Returns (2002), the authors looked at equity returns from capital gains and dividends from 1900 to 2000. They determined that performance in any given year was driven by capital appreciation, but long-term returns were largely the result of reinvested dividends.

Here are several companies looking to increase their long-term returns by raising their cash dividends:

Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) Dividend Stock Analysis

Linked here is a detailed quantitative analysis of Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT). Below are some highlights from the above linked analysis:

Company Description: Lockheed Martin Corp., the world's largest military weapons manufacturer, is also a significant supplier to NASA and other non-defense government agencies. LMT receives about 93% of its revenues from global defense sales.

D4L Premium Services' Price Will Never Be This Low Again

Since its introduction in July 2009, the D4L Premium Services has seen excellent growth in both features and subscribers. It started with the initial release of the D4L-Dashboard. Then other services were added such as Analytical Reports, D4L-Alerts, D4L-Data and the monthly D4L-Newsletter. We are constantly looking for ways to provide our subscribers with value.

6 Rainy Day Dividend Stocks

A pessimist might say life is a series of bad things happening, then we die. I certainty wouldn't go that far, but life often deals us unfortunate circumstances to work through at what seems to be the most inopportune time. During the 2007-2008 economic downturn, many people lost their jobs at a time when companies weren't hiring. When things like this happen, those with an alternative income, including dividend growth stocks, are in a better position to deal with the circumstances thrust on them.

Dividend Increases: Stocks Pumping Up Their Dividend

Dividend sustainability is paramount for the high-yield investor. Having a stock cut its dividend could potentially crush their income. A high-yield investor is less concerned about dividend growth than maintaining the current high-yield. Most traditional dividend growth stocks pay a moderate to low yield, thus sustainability is not enough - the dividend growth investor also expects substantial and consistent growth.

Below are several companies not only sustaining their dividends, but growing them: