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 these past few days.

We can start with Plains All American Pipeline (PAA -0.72%). The energy transporter declared a quarterly distribution of $0.5425 per unit. It may just be a 2% increase from its most recent payout, but the company has come through with increases in 32 of the past 34 quarters.

Is it any wonder that Plains All American Pipeline hit a fresh all-time high on Friday?

Corning (GLW 0.57%) is also feeling a bit more generous. The maker of specialty glass and ceramics that include everything from the Gorilla Glass on your scratch-resistant smartphone to TV glass substrates is propping its quarterly dividend 20% higher to $0.09 a share.

Phillips 66 (PSX -4.37%) is another gusher. The downstream energy giant with a daily refining capacity of 2.2 million barrels of oil is juicing up its quarterly rate by 25% to $0.25 a share.

Finally we have Calavo Growers (CVGW 0.49%) putting a little more green in its guacamole. The avocado grower is announcing a quarterly distribution of $0.65 a share, an 18% increase from last year's rate. Calavao's disbursements rate has more than tripled since the company went public 10 years ago.

Checks and balances
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. A 30-day trial subscription will let you see if it's right for you.

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