Weekly Dividend Increase Report for the Week of January 9, 2012 – A Slow Start…

Daily Dividend Investor Update

To my loyal Daily Dividend Investor readers: Please note that I have migrated the blog over to a managed server located at: www.dailydividendinvestor.com

I will continue to update this WordPress site with duplicate content for a few weeks – most likely until the new year, but you may want to check in at my new hosted location for all the latest content. I am also using a better – easier to read theme that I hope you’ll enjoy. Thanks for reading and following along and don’t forget to LIKE our Facebook page!

Thanks!

Neil

Weekly Dividend Increase Report for the Week of January 9, 2012 – A Slow Start…

January is definitely off to a slow start as far as dividend increases go. This week only two companies reported dividend increases including an industrial machinery & goods company, Robbins & Myers (ticker: RBN) as well as Plains All American Pipeline, LP (ticker: PAA) an oil and natural gas pipeline management firm.

The weekly wrap

As I do each week, I´ve provided a Google Doc spreadsheet at the bottom of this post with all the specifics, that you can refer back to at any time.

Each week as I go through the list of companies that have reported dividend increases, I´m often surprised to learn about new companies I´ve never heard of, even though many of them have been in business for 50 to 100 year or longer!

Weekly Dividend Increase Report for the Week of January 2, 2012 – Back in the swing of things.

Daily Dividend Investor Update

To my loyal Daily Dividend Investor readers: Please note that I have migrated the blog over to a managed server located at: www.dailydividendinvestor.com

I will continue to update this WordPress site with duplicate content for a few weeks – most likely until the new year, but you may want to check in at my new hosted location for all the latest content. I am also using a better – easier to read theme that I hope you’ll enjoy. Thanks for reading and following along and don’t forget to LIKE our Facebook page!

Thanks!

Neil

 

Dividend Increases for the week of  January 2, 2012

As things return to normal this week, we saw six companies come to market with announcements of a dividend increase. The companies reporting increases were spread broadly across several sectors including retail, real estate, business development, banking as well as a heating & cooling equipment supply company.

The weekly wrap

After the announced dividend increases, the new yields ranged from a low of 1.45% up to 8.51%. This week’s winner for highest yield was Pennant Park Floating Rate Capital (ticker: PFLT) – yield 8.51%. It should come as little surprise to DDI readers that Pennant Park is a Business Development Company ( also known as a BDC). Like many of the BDC’s we’ve seen in the dividend update recently, Pennant Park has increased their payout three times since June, 2011.

The Weekly Surprise

In a sign that the economy may finally be getting back on solid ground, we were pleasantly surprised with Macy’s (ticker: M)  dividend increase this week to $.80/annually. That is a 100% increase over their previous dividend payout. Will this be the beginning of more dividend increases to come from the likes of Gap, Target, Nordstrom and Walmart? While some retailers like Sears Holdings (ticker: SHLD) said their holiday season wasn’t so merry – the general consensus seems to be that more good news lies ahead for retailers.

Daily Dividend Portfolio Due Diligence

Each week when I put together the list of dividend increases, I’m on the lookout for new investment ideas that I may want to add to the DDI portfolio. Because I’ve added a few BDC’s (Solar Capital: ticker SUNS) to the portfolio recently, I would probably pass on adding Pennant Park to my review list presently even though it does pay monthly with an above average yield.

The two ideas that seem most compelling at the moment are Watsco (ticker: WSO), the heating & cooling equipment supply company yielding 3.67% and Macy’s (ticker: M) the clothing and home-furnishing retailer yielding 2.31%. Even though I’m currently targeting new holdings with a dividend yield at or above 4% I would add these two companies to my consideration list because they would provide sector / industry diversification that I’m currently lacking.

There were no current DDI portfolio holdings that reported a dividend increase this week. A spreadsheet containing the weekly dividend increase round up for the week of January 2, 2012 can be found here – or by clicking on the spreadsheet image located at the bottom of today’s post.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership,Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues.

Remember to review all of the fundamentals of any company BEFORE investing – do not simply buy a stock based on the dividend payout. If you have further questions about any stock mentioned her you should first consult with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before making any investments.

For more detailed information about all of today’s dividend increases please refer to the chart below.

Weekly Dividend Increase Report for the Week of December 19, 2011

Daily Dividend Investor Update

To my loyal Daily Dividend Investor readers: Please note that I have migrated the blog over to a managed server located at: www.dailydividendinvestor.com

I will continue to update this WordPress site with duplicate content for a few weeks – most likely until the new year, but you may want to check in at my new hosted location for all the latest content. I am also using a better – easier to read theme that I hope you’ll enjoy. Thanks for reading and following along and don’t forget to LIKE our Facebook page!

Thanks!

Neil

Dividend Increases for the week of  December 19, 2011

With the holidays upon us, this week was a fairly quiet one for dividend increases as we approach the end of the year. This week’s update includes 10 companies announcing dividend increases, with 2 notable increases of 150% over their previous payout!

The weekly wrap

For the investor looking for a safe “blue chip” holding, this week’s holiday gift was AT&T (ticker: T) which raised it’s annual dividend by $.04 to $1.76/share for a yield of 5.89%.

Considering that most CD and bank savings accounts are paying 1% or less – AT&T may offer a good alternative. In recent quarters there has been some concern that with AT&T’s landline revenues continuing to disappear, perhaps the AT&T dividend could be at risk – but with the increase this week, those fears have been put to rest, at least for the time being.

Dividend Growth

When investing for income, one of the most important factors to consider, besides the ongoing safety of the dividend payout, is to look for those companies that are continuing to grow their dividend stream. This week offers two potential opportunities for the investor looking to add dividend growth.

Village Supermarket (ticker: VLGEA) and Spreadtrum Communications (ticker: SPRD) which both raised their quarterly payout by a jaw dropping 150%. Village Supermarket now pays $1.00/share and yields 3.45% while Spreastrum Communications pays $.40/share with a new yield of 1.91%.

 As always, I have provided a link below to the Google document online spreadsheet with all of the details of this week’s announcements. I have also highlighted the two top two stocks with the highest dividend increase in green as well as highlighting the stock with the highest overall yield in yellow.

I should caution you as always, that because a stock is highlighted does not mean you should add it to a buy list, my intent is to simply point out those stocks with unique characteristics for your review.

One other notable name in this week’s roundup is Norwood Financial (ticker: NWFL).Norwood is now yielding 4.43% after it’s dividend increase to $1.20/share.  What caught my eye about Norwood was it’s 141 years of  successful business operations.

It’s no secret that I’ve added some riskier positions to the DDI portfolio, but I believe part of the “secret sauce” is continually finding niche companies that have remained profitable for long periods of time (50 years or longer ideally) that also offer ongoing dividend growth.

The DDI portfolio remains unchanged this week as none of the companies reporting a dividend increase are currently members of the portfolio.

For more detailed information about all of today’s dividend increases please refer to the chart below.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership,Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues.

Remember to review all of the fundamentals of any company BEFORE investing – do not simply buy a stock based on the dividend payout. If you have further questions about any stock mentioned her you should first consult with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before making any investments.

Weekly Dividend Increase Report for the Week of December 12, 2011

Daily Dividend Investor Update

To my loyal Daily Dividend Investor readers: Please note that I have migrated the site over to a managed server located at: www.dailydividendinvestor.com

I will continue to update this WordPress site with duplicate content for a few weeks, but you may want to check in at my new hosted location for all the latest content. I am also using a better – easier to read theme that I hope you’ll enjoy. Thanks for reading and following along and don’t forget to LIKE our Facebook page!

Thanks!

Neil

Dividend Increases for the week of  December 12, 2011

With this update of stocks increasing their dividend, I’ve gone to a new and improved, weekly format.

I was finding that writing a report everyday for the stocks with dividend increases was a lot to keep up with. Often times there would be stocks with minimal increases, but nothing really meaningful to add about those increases or the companies behind them.

Since the Daily Dividend Investor portfolio isn’t about day trading, the information presented is just a valuable on a weekly basis as on a daily basis.

Actually, I think being able to scan the list of *all* the increases for the week is more valuable – allowing the reader to quickly process more possible investment ideas in a shorter amount of time.

I hope you enjoy the new format!

The weekly wrap

There were a total of 38 stocks that increased their dividend this week including 5 that already make up the Daily Dividend Investor portfolio. With the new format I have highlighted the top two stocks with the highest dividend increase in green as well as highlighting the two stocks with the highest overall yield in yellow.

I should caution you as always, that because a stock is highlighted does not mean you should add it to a buy list, my intent is to simply point out those stocks with unique characteristics for your review.

The stocks with dividend increases this week spanned a broad spectrum of industries from Hotels (Host Resorts – ticker: HST), Real Estate (Realty Income – ticker: O), Pharmaceuticals (Pfizer – ticker: PFE) to Utilities (Edison International – ticker: EIX) and Financial Services (Discover – ticker:DFS)

The DDI Portfolio Organic Growth

The Daily Dividend Investor portfolio saw increases in five of it’s current holdings:

• Edison International – ticker: EIX
• General Electric – ticker: GE
• Pfizer – ticker: PFE
• Nucor – ticker: NUE
• Realty Income – ticker: O

When choosing new additions for the DDI portfolio, dividend growth is one of the key factors I consider, so it’s good to see the holdings not just pay a dividend but increase it as well. The percentage increases ranged from .2% up to 13% across these five holdings.

Top Producers

This week’s top producers included two high-yielders in the 8-12% range. Dynex Capital (ticker: DX) with a new payout of $1.12/share yielding 11.2% and Atlantic Power (ticker: AT) paying $1.14/share and a yield of 8.46%. If you’re looking to diversify with a Canadian holding that also pays out monthly you may want to dig a little deeper with Atlantic Power.

While there may be some tax withholding implications for investors outside of Canada, the above average monthly payout makes Atlantic Power a compelling story.

For those looking more at total dividend growth over absolute return, we had two homeruns this week. Morningstar (ticker: MORN) had a 100% increase taking their annual dividend from $.20 to $.40/share. Agrium (ticker: AGU), although only a semi-annual payer, hit the grandslam with a 309% increase, taking it’s annual payout from $.11 to $.45/share. Unfortunately, even after these monster increases, both of these shares are still yielding well below 1%.

Special Notes

This week’s stock of special note is Franklin Resources (ticker: BEN). While Franklin did raise their dividend this week 8% to $1.08, they also announced a special dividend of $2/share which brings the annualized yield on this stock to just over 3%

For more detailed information about all of today’s dividend increases please refer to the chart below.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership,Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues.

Remember to review all of the fundamentals of any company BEFORE investing – do not simply buy a stock based on the dividend payout. If you have further questions about any stock mentioned her you should first consult with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before making any investments.

Dividend Increases for Friday December 9, 2011

 

Daily Dividend Investor Update

 

To my loyal Daily Dividend Investor readers: Please note that I have migrated the site over to a managed server located at: www.dailydividendinvestor.com

 

I will continue to update this WordPress site with duplicate content for a few weeks,  but you may want to check in at my new hosted location for all the latest content. I am also using a better – easier to read theme that I hope you’ll enjoy. Thanks for reading and following along and don’t forget to LIKE our Facebook page!

 

Thanks!

 

Neil

Dividend Increases for Friday December 9, 2011

Finishing off the week of December 9th, seven more companies announced dividend increases, plus we saw Ford Motor Company (ticker: F) re-instate it’s quarterly dividend after several years of rebuilding it’s balance sheet.

Of the seven companies, two in particular stand out as notable: National Health Investors (ticker: NHI) and WP Carey (ticker: WPC) since both of these companies are already members of the DDI portfolio. With these two dividend increases today, the DDI portfolio continues to grow it’s payout organically.

As we watch those companies that continue to raise their dividends, we realize that these are often the most conservative companies, with strong balance sheets. As such, these stocks don’t always offer the higher yields, although today’s group has a few options to consider that offer yields in the 5% range.

Today’s List of Dividend Increases

The yield spread on today group of dividend increases ranges from Ford Motor (ticker: F) at 1.8% with it’s newly announced dividend up through National Health Investors (ticker: NHI) yielding 5.94%.

The one other household name in today’s bunch, HR Block (ticker: HRB) the tax preparation folks, bumped it’s dividend by 33% to $.80 with a yield of 5.02%.

For more detailed information about all of today’s dividend increases please refer to the chart below.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership,Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues.

Remember to review all of the fundamentals of any company BEFORE investing – do not simply buy a stock based on the dividend payout. If you have further questions about any stock mentioned her you should first consult with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before making any investments.

Dividend Increases for Thursday December 8, 2011

Dividend Increases for Thursday December 8, 2011

It’s been a busy day with 7 companies announcing dividend increases as we approach the end of 2011. Today’s mix includes a variety of sectors including Real Estate, Insurance, Natural Gas Tranportation, as well as Appliance and Paint manufacturing.

While none of the yields on any of today’s companies even reach 4%, the percentage increases range from 7 to 25% showing signs that more and more companies are becoming comfortable enough with their financial footing that they can begin to make significant increases to their quarterly payouts.

Today’s List of Dividend Increases

Horace Mann Education (ticker: HMN) tops the list today with an 18% increase in the dividend and a new payout at 3.8% yield.

Also of note is Roper Industries (ticker: ROP) You may know Roper Industries from one of the many household appliances they manufacture and sell in the US.

While the yield on Roper’s stock is a measly .65%, they deserve recognition for increasing their dividend by a whopping 25%! This may be company to add to your due-diligence list – as often times, low yielding plays like Roper Industries may outperform over the long-term if they are able to continue such rapid increases in the dividend payout.

Other Dividend Increases

Other companies that increased their dividend today included the financial services firm Ameriprise Financial (ticker: AMP) with a new yield of 2.37%. Enbridge (ticker: EWB), Erie Indemnity (ticker: ERIE), Strker Corp (ticker: SYK) and Valspar (ticker: VAL) were also included in today’s increases.

For more detailed information about today’s dividend increases please refer to the chart below.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership,Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues.

Remember to review all of the fundamentals of any company BEFORE investing – do not simply buy a stock based on the dividend payout. If you have further questions about any stock mentioned her you should first consult with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before making any investments.

Dividend Increases for Wednesday December 7, 2011

Dividend Increases for Wednesday December 7, 2011

Today’s dividend update includes four companies who increased their dividend. Most notable is the BDC (Business Development Corp.) that raised it’s dividend for the 3rd time in 3 months with today’s increase of over 11%!

As we’ve discussed before BDC’s are on the riskier side of the dividend income spectrum, however with an improving economy, they may be the perfect place to deploy some of your higher “risk” capital. 

The Steady Eddy

When we highlight the companies that have increased their dividends, most times they are not your household names – which isn’t always such a bad thing because many times these are companies who have found a niche and are *very* profitable in that niche.

When building the DDI portfolio I like to balance it out with smaller companies as well as larger more established blue chip names. Brystol Myers Squibb (ticker: BMY) is one of those names and today they rewarded their shareholders with a nice holiday bonus by increasing the dividend payout from $1.32/share to $1.36/share on an annual basis, which brings their yield to 4.05% based on today’s prices.

The Firecracker

As mentioned at the open, today we saw Solar Senior Corp (ticker: SUNS) a BDC, raise their monthly dividend 11.1% to $1.20/share annually.

 

This BDC has been raising their dividend fairly consistently since their initial dividend payment last June.

The current yield on this company is 7.44% – however, the shares have pulled back sharply from the $19 range last spring and are currently trading in the $15-16/range which is adding to the current yield. Because of the monthly payout and the potential for continued increases in the dividend, I will be doing more research as I consider adding SUNS to the DDI portfolio.

Other Dividend Increases

Wednesday’s other dividend increases came from Baytex Energy (ticker: BTE) which pays monthly and increased it’s dividend to $2.64/share annually. Hillenbrand (ticker: HI) also offered a small token dividend increase of $.01/share. Hillenbrand now pays $.77/share annually for a yield of just over 3.5%.

For more detailed information about today’s dividend increases please refer to the chart below.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership,Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues.

Remember to review all of the fundamentals of any company BEFORE investing – do not simply buy a stock based on the dividend payout. If you have further questions about any stock mentioned her you should first consult with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before making any investments.

Click on the chart above to download the google docs spreadsheet.

My BIG “why”?

My BIG “why”?

That’s the question, why?

Why build the Daily Dividend Investor portfolio?

Why seek passive income?

Why bother at all?

For me there are TWO answers:

1. Spending time on new business projects.

and

2. Spending time with my kids.

There is nothing wrong with a 9-5 job, I’ve had several of them and I’ve been lucky enough to enjoy the work that I had. Whether it was working in a warehouse stocking shelves or configuring large computer networks for a Fortune 500 software company – I’ve always found work that I loved.

But the problem with a 9-5 job is that it means you are at the mercy of some else (your boss) when it comes to the allocation of your time.

For me, I get bored easily, wanting to constantly move from one challenge to the next. Most “jobs” don’t give you that flexibility – they prefer that you master a few tasks and repeat them again and again and again.

Earlier this month my wife and I decided to take the kids out of school for a couple of days for a quick road trip to San Diego. We spent 5 days together as a family, in the sunny SoCal weather enjoying Legoland, the San Diego Zoo and several local beaches, not to mention some of the best Mexican food around.

• I didn’t have to think about asking (permission) for time off.
• I didn’t have to worry about (not) getting paid.
• I didn’t have to constantly check emails and voicemails to make sure all was fine back at the office.

I spent my time focused on my family and enjoyed the time we had together.

Because we have the flexibility to go on trips like this when we want, we can avoid the peak travel times and the crowds that go with them. It makes for a lot less stressful trip!

The DDI portfolio is one of several passive income streams I’ve created and  it currently is the smallest in the size of income it generates for me. However, I expect to grow it consistently over the next few years. My ultimate goal would be for the DDI portfolio to generate $5000.00 /month in passive unmanaged income.

Right now the growth of the DDI portfolio is one of my main projects. I’m positive that over time, I will find newer more interesting projects – but if I build it with a firm foundation, I know that it will continue to serve me well for the long-term.

Eventually, it is an asset that I will pass along to my kids, and in turn perhaps it will someday help their kids as well – a legacy of sorts. For now I am enjoying the journey of continuing to build the DDI portfolio and am thankful that it is already providing support for my family to enjoy an occasional vacation and time together!

Time for a mini-vacation at the lake…

Things are looking good!

The DDI portfolio is cruising right along generating passive income of  $283.89  month to date so far in July.

With about a month left of summer, before the kids have to go back to school, we’re going to take advantage of the great California weather and head on out to California’s Gold Country with a short stay at  New Melones Reservoir in Central California for a few days of boating, wake-boarding and tubing with our family and close friends.

Passive Income buys Time & Freedom

The DDI Portfolio builds steam like a train!

It’s time like these, that make me appreciate that I can take time off and know that I’ve still got a stream of income coming into to pay my bills.

Each day the DDI portfolio continues to grow the income stream, and is quickly approaching my target of paying out $500/month on a consistent basis.

Family time is something we highly value, so I figure now’s a good time to enjoy some of the fruits of my labor and take a few days off from managing my trading and income portfolios.

While catching some rays and enjoying an ice cold Blue Moon or Anchor Steam brew, I’m going to take some time to work on my 6 & 12 month life and business plans. Taking time out to recharge really helps to clear your mind and figure out what is most important in your life. I’m excited about coming back with a great action plan in had ready to roll.

But for now, let’s have some fun in the sun!

Dividend Increases for Thursday July 14, 2011

Dividend Increases for Thursday July 14, 2011

Four companies announced dividend increases today including 2 Limited Partnerships, 1 Business Development Corporation (BDC) and a commonly held Large Cap.

The largest increases in dividends came from Pope Resources L.P. (ticker: pope) with a huge 40% increase, followed by the drugstore chain, Walgreen Company (ticker: wag) with an equally impressive increase of 28%, keeping it’s 35 year tradition of dividend increases alive.

Completing today’s line-up of dividend increases are Gladstone Investment Corporation (ticker: gain) and Genesys Energy L.P. (ticker: GEL) with increases of 11% and 1.8% respectively.

Week in review

This week over 10 separate companies have delivered dividend increases which offers up good evidence that not only the US economy, but those around the world are not only healing but are beginning to show signs of continued growth and expansion.

Investment Considerations

As always when evaluating investment opportunities it’s important to keep in mind not only the fundamentals of the stock itself, but also how the holding entity (Limited Partnership, Royalty Trust, Master Limited Partnership, Business Development Company, Preferred Stock) may affect the way you report income on your annual tax return as well as the amount or percentage of tax  you will be required to pay. Adding shares of any of these special entities to tax deferred / retirement accounts may also present additional issues that should be discussed with your CPA or tax planner / advisor before purchasing.