Dividend checks continue to get fatter in corporate America, as more companies jack up their distribution rates.

Readers of the Income Investor newsletter can certainly appreciate that kind of thinking. Let's take a closer look at some of the companies that inched their payouts higher this past week.

Let's start with Ryder (NYSE: R).

The provider of truck rentals and supply chain management solutions announced Wednesday that its next quarterly dividend will be for $0.31 a share. It's a 7% improvement from the $0.29 a share that it was previously dishing out.

A.O. Smith (NYSE: AOS) is also heating up. The maker of water heating equipment and boilers is raising the temperature on its quarterly disbursements. Investors will now be receiving $0.20 a share every three months, 25% more than they were getting before.

They should be used to this by now. A.O. Smith has come through with seven consecutive years of hikes.

Cummins (NYSE: CMI) is also doing more coming than going. The engine maker is revving up its quarterly rate 25% higher to $0.50 a share. It wasn't all good news for Cummins, though. The stock took a hit since the yield boost was accompanied by the company lowering its projections.

Finally, we have Fastenal (Nasdaq: FAST) putting a meatier payout together. The maker of industrial and construction supplies jacked up its quarterly dividend by 12% to $0.19 a share.

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.

If you want to track these stocks to see if and when they hike their payouts again, consider adding them to My Watchlist.