I love to kick off the new trading week by taking a quick peek at companies that have just hiked their dividends. It's not just about the money. A company that is easing up on its pocketbook probably has improving fundamentals to back up that generosity.
Readers of the Income Investor newsletter can certainly appreciate that kind of thinking. Let's take a closer look at four of the companies that inched their payouts higher over the past week.
Let's start by banking on Wells Fargo
Value Line
The aggressive uptick may come as a surprise to those combing over the company's quarterly results, which accompanied the announcement. Earnings actually dipped by 9% for the quarter, on declining revenue. However, Value Line has earned $2.56 a share over the past year, more than enough to cover the $1.60 a share it will return to investors during fiscal 2009. Its new 4.6% yield is also bound to be attractive in its niche, as the faster-growing Morningstar
StanleyWorks
Finally, we have water heater maker A.O. Smith
Subscribers to the Income Investor newsletter can appreciate the companies sending more and more money to their investors. The newsletter singles out companies that are committed to growing their distributions with market-thumping results.
Want to see what is being recommended these days? Go ahead and give the newsletter service a shot with a 30-day trial subscription. Who knows? Maybe the next thing that will get hiked will be your interest.