Leggett & Platt is now trading with one of the highest yields offered by a Dividend King at over 4.5%, as fragile economic conditions have weighed on the company's stock.Stubbornly high inflation and continued supply chain disruptions have led to lower sales volumes for the manufacturer of engineered components such as mattress springs and foams, [...]

McDonald's on Monday announced intentions to sell its Russian business, two months after temporarily suspending operations in the country due to the war in Ukraine. While the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine is tragic and the headlines about McDonald's exit of Russia may create some anxiety for conservative income investors, these issues should not impact the [...]

As inflation weighs heavy on consumers' pocketbooks, shares of apparel retailers have fallen nearly 30% this year, almost double the broader market decline.On top of shoppers' stretched budgets, clothing retailers continue to battle shipping and supply challenges exasperated by this year's Covid-related lockdowns in China, the world's largest textile producer.These economic headwinds have pushed shares [...]

Philip Morris on Wednesday announced plans to acquire Swedish Match in a $16 billion all-cash transaction, marking a major step in the international Marlboro maker's transition to a smoke-free company. While this deal will increase Philip Morris's leverage ratio from about 2x to 3x, its highest level in at least a decade, management reassured investors that they [...]

Shares of T. Rowe Price have slumped nearly 50% since late 2021, sending the stock's dividend yield to levels not seen since the depths of the pandemic and the 2007-09 financial crisis. As one of the world's largest money managers, T. Rowe generates most of its revenue from investment advisory fees charged for managing clients' [...]

AT&T's long-anticipated dividend reduction became official last week as the telecommunications giant reduced its payout by 47%, in line with management's previous guidance. With the firm's rebased dividend in place, we are upgrading AT&T's Dividend Safety Score to Safe. This reflects the company's improved financial position and more defensive business mix. Going forward, AT&T's dividend will consume roughly [...]

Earlier this year, PPL cut its dividend by around 50%, an expected move following the firm's divesture of its U.K.-based utility operations that previously generated roughly half the company's earnings.This payout reduction better aligned the dividend with the company's remaining operations in Pennsylvania and Kentucky and to a much more comfortable level that can support [...]

Shares of Philip Morris International have slumped 15% since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24. Unlike most companies headquartered in America, Philip Morris has meaningful ties to Russia and Ukraine. Russia accounted for 6% of the firm's 2021 net revenues, and Ukraine added another 2%. These countries also played a key role in Philip Morris's [...]

This year, CVS Health raised its dividend by 10% after keeping the payout frozen for five years as the company prioritized deleveraging efforts, following the sizable 2018 acquisition of health insurer Aetna.With leverage reduced to pre-acquisition levels, CVS now intends to keep raising the annual payout in line with earnings growth. This plan implies the [...]

The nation's largest self-storage REIT, Public Storage, has kept its dividend frozen since 2017 despite having the balance sheet and cash flow to support increasing payouts.Given Public Storage's strong financial health, many investors question why dividend growth has remained elusive in recent years – especially when considering REITs are required to distribute at least 90% [...]

Despite a broad economic recovery, the struggles of skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) amplified by the pandemic continue to loom large.With SNFs accounting for nearly 80% of Omega's portfolio, not much has improved since our note last August. Dividend coverage remains stretched as SNF operators, the REITs tenants, continue to struggle with reduced occupancy rates and labor [...]

Intel on February 17 hosted an analyst day to provide more details on its turnaround strategy, which seeks to restore the chip maker's technological leadership position while also building a foundry business to manufacture semiconductors for others. Expanding existing production and constructing new fabs, or chip factories, will require substantial capital investment. For example, Intel expects to [...]

While many energy stocks have experienced a strong recovery from pandemic lows, midstream providers have struggled to keep up. This underperformance has even included industry leaders like Magellan, which trades with an attractive dividend yield of over 8%.The market's failure to reward Magellan triggers questions about what risks have kept hesitant investors at bay.To be [...]

Lumen's stock has slumped more than 20% since reporting earnings on February 9, pushing its dividend yield north of 10%.Formerly known as CenturyLink, the telecom provider issued disappointing 2022 guidance, which caused some investors to worry about Lumen's plan to ramp spending on fiber delivered to consumers and small businesses. Management's big bet on fiber [...]

When the pandemic struck in the spring of 2020, and much of the developed world began sheltering in place, demand for fuel quickly evaporated, leading to tumbling oil prices that turned negative for the first time in history.This sudden and drastic hit to the energy market was short-lived following a quick economic rebound. After being [...]