In June, we warned that EQM Midstream Partners' (EQM) Dividend Safety Score could be downgraded if the firm's critical Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) project faced further delays. Unfortunately, on October 22, EQM announced that the MVP's estimated completion date has been pushed back once more from mid-2020 to "late 2020" and its projected cost also increased by $500 million to between $5.3 billion and $5.5 billion. This latest setback likely keeps EQM's leverage higher for longer, making it more difficult for EQM to maintain its investment-grade credit rating which management has said is a priority. A downgrade to junk status would raise EQM's cost of capital, potentially hurting its ability to profitably fund its future growth projects.

General Mills (GIS) was founded in 1866, owning just a single flour mill at the time. After expanding into a number of different industries like restaurants, toys, and even apparel, the company refocused completely on consumer foods in 1995. Today, General Mills sells a diversified mix of packaged meals, cereal, snacks, baking products, yogurt, and more. No category accounts for more than 20% of total sales, and General Mills is also one of the largest U.S. producers of organic packaged food (over 5% of sales are from natural and organic products). The company’s largest brands are Cheerios, Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Pillsbury, Nature Valley, Old El Paso, and Haagen-Dazs, with each brand generating over $1 billion in annual sales.

Exxon Mobil's (XOM) dividend yield sits just above 5%, its highest level in nearly 30 years. The energy giant's dividend continues to look secure thanks to its strong balance sheet, but Exxon's high spending on growth projects, coupled with today's challenging energy market, will likely put more pressure on the firm's cash flow in the short to medium term. As a result, we are downgrading Exxon's Dividend Safety Score from Very Safe to Safe. I plan to continue holding our shares of Exxon in our Conservative Retirees portfolio and believe the company's dividend remains attractive for income investors.

Boeing (BA) shares have slumped nearly 13% over the last week, driven by a report released by Reuters on Friday that surfaced new concerns about the aircraft manufacturer's safety practices and oversight. Specifically, Reuters uncovered internal messages between two Boeing pilots stating that the 737 MAX's flight-control system acted up during a 2016 testing simulation, less than a year before the plane was certified for commercial service.