Realty Income (O) was founded in 1969 and is one of the largest REITs in America. The company owns more than 5,600 properties located in 49 states and leases its buildings to 260 commercial tenants operating in 48 diverse industries. In recent years the REIT has begun diversifying into non-retail properties, including offices (4% of rental revenue), industrial warehouses (12%), and farmland (2%). However, retail properties still generate 81% of total rental revenue. All of the company's properties are under long-term triple-net lease agreements, which provide solid cash flow visibility and shift property operating expenses such as maintenance, utilities, insurance, and taxes to the tenant. In other words, the rental revenue received by Realty Income has substantially fewer expenses and [...]

Chevron (CVX) was founded in 1879 and became a standalone company after the breakup of Standard Oil in 1911. Today Chevron is one of the largest integrated oil companies in the world, with major operations in over 30 countries. The business operates across four segments: U.S. Upstream Operations (18% of operating earnings): Chevron explores for, develops, and produces crude oil and natural gas. The firm is also involved in the processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification associated with liquefied natural gas. Chevron transports crude and natural gas as well. International Upstream Operations (59% of operating earnings):key production regions include Australia, Nigeria, Thailand, Indonesia, Angola, Bangladesh, and Canada. U.S. Downstream Operations (14% of operating earnings): Chevron owns refineries that use crude oil to make [...]

Founded in 1890, Emerson Electric (EMR) is a global industrial conglomerate that serves a variety of industries including oil and gas, refining, chemicals, power generation, pharma, food and beverages, pulp and paper, metal and mining, and municipal water supply. Emerson Electric brings together technology and engineering to provide solutions for customers in the process, industrial, commercial, and residential markets. Whether it’s monitoring food temperatures throughout the supply chain or replacing a deteriorating valve that could cause costly downtime, the company helps customers optimize their operations and increase reliability, efficiency, and safety. Emerson completed a number of strategic actions in recent years to streamline its portfolio and refocus on its core businesses. The company divested more than $5 billion worth of [...]

The vast majority of dividend cuts can be spotted in advance. Dividend cutters often possess some combination of a dangerously high payout ratio, falling earnings, and too much debt. Unfortunately, Vale's (VALE) announcement on January 27 to suspend all dividends, share repurchases, and management bonuses was triggered by a swift and severe tragedy – the collapse of a dam at one of its iron ore mines in Brazil killed at least 60 people, with over 250 people still missing. The affected families will never be the same, and while it could take several years to reach a settlement, Vale will certainly be on the hook for substantial environmental and civil damages related to this disaster. Suspending the dividend helps preserve cash to [...]