Despite paying higher dividends each year since 2000, North American pipeline giant TransCanada (TRP) has seen its share price slump nearly 20% in 2018. As a result, TRP's dividend yield sits at 5.3%, near its highest level since the financial crisis. The midstream industry has been under pressure since the price of oil began tumbling in 2014. Many firms in this space are structured as master limited partnerships (MLPs) and have faced the most strain due to unfavorable regulatory developments, rising interest rates, and souring investor sentiment. However, TransCanada is a corporation, not an MLP, so many of those headwinds are less relevant to its performance. With the stock's yield sitting high compared to its history, let's take a closer [...]

Asset manager Invesco (IVZ) has seen its shares plunge over 50% in 2018, resulting in its dividend yield soaring to a record high of 6.9%. Although the company has increased its dividend each year for more than a decade, the stock's recent performance is causing many income income investors to feel anxious. Let's take a look at why the market is so worried about Invesco and whether those fears mean the dividend could be at risk of a cut.

Whenever a high-yield stock falls significantly, it's natural that income investors want to know if it's just random noise (and potentially a buying opportunity) or a sign that something is wrong with a company's business model that could threaten the safety of the dividend. Magellan Midstream Partners (MMP) is one of the popular master limited partnerships, or MLPs, in the market. However, even this blue-chip stock has fallen 15% since mid-August, pushing its yield to an eight-year high of 6.6%. Let's take a look at why the market is so bearish on Magellan to assess whether the partnership remains on solid ground, or if its distribution and long-term outlook could be in trouble.

Tobacco stocks have historically been a dependable source of generous and growing income, plus solid long-term total returns. However, not all cigarette stocks are created equal. In 2018, Vector Group (VGR) has seen its stock price plunge nearly 50%, worse than its major tobacco rivals (shares of Altria and Philip Morris have lost 23% and 19%, respectively). Vector's Dividend Safety Score has remained in our "Very Unsafe" category for more than a year. With VGR's dividend yield nearing 14%, its highest level in more than two decades, let's evaluate if a dividend cut could be on the horizon to end the firm's 20-year dividend growth streak.