ONEOK (OKE) on Thursday declared its regular quarterly dividend payable in May, maintaining its existing payout despite the uncertainty facing the midstream services industry.  "ONEOK's dividend payout is supported by our strong balance sheet and healthy dividend coverage. Holding the dividend at its current level is the prudent financial decision for ONEOK during this time of market uncertainty. Our integrated and extensive assets and financial strength position us well for an industry recovery once energy markets stabilize." – CEO Terry Spencer Previously, on March 11, ONEOK reaffirmed its 2020 guidance for the year despite the plunge in commodity prices and the impact that will have on producer activity. Management also reduced the firm's 2020 capital spending plans from $2.5 billion to $2 billion and [...]

Shares of Franklin Resources (BEN) are down 25% since March 1, significantly underperforming the S&P 500 during that period and pushing Franklin's dividend yield near an all-time high of 7%. Since we published our last note on Franklin in February reviewing the firm's $4.5 billion acquisition of Legg Mason, the coronavirus pandemic has taken the world by storm, and financial markets have been hit hard. Franklin and other asset managers don't do well when the market sinks because management fee revenue is driven by the value of their investments. It's also possible that the market's elevated volatility has further challenged the performance of Franklin's funds, causing more investors to pull their money out.

STORE Capital (STOR) is a triple-net lease REIT with a highly diversified portfolio of tenants that operate in 49 states and over 110 industries. No single tenant accounts for more than 3% of revenue. STORE hasn't provided an update to investors since coronavirus-related shutdowns began in earnest in late March, making it challenging to assess the impact of the pandemic on the firm's tenants. However, our preliminary analysis suggests that STORE's tenants may be significantly impacted by shutdown orders and what will likely be extremely challenging conditions this year for restaurants, gyms, entertainment venues, retailers, and more. As a result, we are downgrading STORE's Dividend Safety Score to Borderline Safe. STORE's rating could be upgraded or further downgraded as the pandemic [...]

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) on Tuesday reported first-quarter results and, unlike many of its peers which have withdrawn guidance, provided investors with an update on management's financial expectations for 2020. First, the dividend will remain safe and growing. Management announced plans to raise J&J's dividend by 6.3%, marking its 58th consecutive year of increases. The company's diversified healthcare businesses and strong balance sheet position J&J well to ride out the pandemic while continuing to reward income investors. Johnson & Johnson's 2019 revenue was generated from pharmaceuticals (51% of sales), medical devices (32%), and consumer health products (17%).