Broadridge Financial Solutions (BR): A High Quality But Often-Overlooked Dividend Growth Stock
Sometimes, the most boring, under-the-radar businesses prove to be the best long-term investments, and Broadridge Financial could be one of them. In fact, Broadridge was called "the most important firm on Wall Street that you've never heard of" by Dick Grasso, the former CEO and chairman of the New York Stock Exchange. Paying higher dividends every year since 2007 and recording double-digit annualized dividend growth, Broadridge is a dividend achiever that boasts an impressive track record. Let's take a closer look at this high quality dividend growth stock to see if the company's future remains bright and if today could be a reasonable time to consider adding to the stock to a diversified dividend portfolio. Business [...]
Updated Thoughts on General Electric (GE)
Knowing how much patience to exercise with an underperforming holding is one of the hardest (and often most humbling) challenges in investing, in my opinion. As a long-term dividend growth investor, when I purchase shares of a company, I hope to hold my ownership stake forever and keep portfolio turnover as low as possible. Of course, that doesn't always happen. The world is always changing, upending investment theses and changing the market's winners and losers. There are two primary reasons why I will sell a holding: (1) I believe the company's long-term outlook has permanently changed for the worse; (2) the company's dividend is at real risk of being cut, which jeopardizes my income stream and potentially my [...]
Welltower (HCN): A Low-Risk, High-Yield REIT With A Long Growth Runway
Real Estate Investment Trusts, or REITs, are a simple way for regular investors to gain exposure to the real estate sector. While there are many different types of REITs to choose from, healthcare in particular has strong long-term potential growth due to highly favorable demographic trends. Let's take a look at Welltower (HCN), America's largest medical REIT, to see why this industry blue chip may be a great fit for conservative high-yield investors, especially those looking for the best high dividend stocks. Business Overview Founded in 1970 in Toledo, Ohio, Welltower has grown into America's largest medical REIT and is the fourth largest REIT by enterprise value (market cap + net debt). Source: HCN Investor Presentation The REIT owns a [...]
Realty Income (O): The Gold Standard In Safe And Steadily Growing Monthly Dividends
Real Estate Investment Trusts, or REITs, can serve as a convenient way for regular investors to profit from rental real estate while also generating income for those seeking to live off dividends in retirement. Realty Income (O) has become famous for its generous, secure, and steadily growing dividends (23 straight years of increases and counting), which are paid monthly and helped the company make our list of the best high dividend stocks here. Let's take a closer look at what makes Realty Income such a safe, high-yield income investment, and as importantly, whether or not today could be a reasonable time to add the stock to a diversified high-yield portfolio. Business Overview Founded in 1969 in Escondido, California, [...]
General Dynamics (GD): A Wide Moat Dividend Aristocrat With Double-Digit Payout Growth Potential
With its 25th straight annual dividend increase, General Dynamics (GD) has finally joined the dividend aristocrats list here. However, even more impressive than the length of this streak is the torrid pace of payout growth GD investors have enjoyed. Specifically, the company has grown its dividend at 14.1% annually since 1992, helping General Dynamics' shares nearly double the broader market's annual total return (15.7% vs 8.8%). Let's take a closer look at this defense contractor to see what gives it such a wide moat and allows it to treat dividend growth investors so well. More importantly, learn if GD's excellent payout growth track record is likely to continue for many more years to come. Business Overview Founded [...]
Ford (F): An Attractive Yield And Valuation, But Look Elsewhere For Steady Dividend Growth
When it comes to safe high dividend stocks, generally you want to stick to companies with numerous competitive advantages and operations in industries that consistently grow. Thus automakers like Ford (F) are typically not where most investors look for such income investments. However, with Ford shares now beaten down and offering an attractive 5.0% dividend yield, many income investors may yet be drawn to it. Let's take closer look at Ford to see why the market is so down on its stock and whether or not it could be a good fit for a diversified dividend growth portfolio. Business Overview Founded in 1903 in Dearborn, Michigan, Ford is the sixth largest automaker by vehicle sales with approximately 7.5% global [...]
International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): A Dividend Achiever Worth Reviewing
You probably use several products every day that are touched by International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), a dividend achiever that has raised its payout every year since 2003. The company has a presence in thousands of consumer products, yet it has largely flown under the radar operating in the chemicals industry. Boring, durable businesses that can predictably pay higher dividends each year can often be some of the best investments for long-term investors, and International Flavors & Fragrances certainly seems to check many of these boxes. Let's take a closer look at International Flavors & Fragrances to see if this strong dividend grower is appealing today. Business Overview International Flavors was founded over 125 years ago and is the behind-the-scenes [...]
Should You Buy a Dividend ETF or Manage Your Own Portfolio of Individual Dividend Stocks?
One of the big questions many dividend investors face early on is whether or not it's worth managing a portfolio of individual dividend stocks instead of keeping things easy and buying a dividend ETF. In fact, I recently emailed with a reader who was interested in comparing the performance of our Conservative Retirees dividend portfolio with the PowerShares S&P 500 High Dividend Low Volatility Portfolio ETF (SPHD), for example. While total return is certainly a very important consideration, there are a number of other factors that can swing the decision one way or the other. Let's start by taking a closer look at SPHD, which is one of my favorite dividend ETFs. The SPHD fund was launched in October 2012 [...]
Digital Realty (DLR): A Tech REIT Benefiting From E-Commerce and Growing Dividends 12 Straight Years
Digital Realty Trust (DLR) is a fast-growing real estate investment trust (REIT) that has raised its dividend every year since going public in 2004. While the company is still far from having a long enough dividend growth history to qualify as a member of the dividend aristocrats list, it has numerous attractive qualities for investors seeking income and growth. Digital Realty is a direct beneficiary of the rapidly growing use of data by businesses and consumers alike. As the data center business continues booming, the company is positioned to continue rewarding investors with rising dividends. Let's take a closer look at Digital Realty to see if this quality REIT can keep pace with the evolving technology landscape and whether [...]
Cardinal Health (CAH): A Dividend Aristocrat Trading Near Its All-Time High Yield
Dividend aristocrats, such as Cardinal Health (CAH), have long been a staple in dividend growth investors' portfolios, and for very good reason. Nothing says "stable, growing, and healthy business" like 25+ years of consecutive dividend growth. With 30 straight years of very impressive 19.7% average annual payout increases, Cardinal Health has proven itself as a dominant industry leader and excellent long-term investment. However, the medical industry is undergoing some major shifts, resulting in changes that could ultimately threaten Cardinal Health's business model, future profit growth, and its ability to continue generating strong dividend increases. As a result, Cardinal Health's stock has underperformed the S&P 500 by approximately 30% over the past year, sending its dividend yield to [...]