Seven Dividend Achievers Defying Coronavirus Fears

It looks like the Corona Virus (Covid -19 ) is spreading rapidly throughout the world, with Northern Italy on lockdown, and the cases in the US exceeding 400 as of the time of this writing. Things are serious, and experts are predicting supply chain distortions. Governments are going to be implementing stimulus measures to stimulate economic activity. It is likely that global growth will decline this year.

As investors, we invest in a business to reap the rewards from long-term ownership. This extends beyond the 1 – 4 quarters of supply disruptions predicted. Hence, by focusing on the long-term picture beyond the current crisis, we can avoid panicking. Once we avoid panicking, we can continue going on with our regular lives. In my case, reviewing the list of dividend increases weekly, and screening the dividend growth investing universe for bargains when I have money to invest.

In these scary times, it is nice to see companies with established track records of annual dividend increases continue to raise distributions to shareholders. Companies raise dividends after analyzing their short-term business needs, and determine how much they can allocate to dividend payments. A dividend increase shows confidence in the near-term prospects of the business. In other words, these businesses do not seem to be fearing the potential disruptions from this virus.

There were seven companies raising dividends last week, which have a ten year history of annual dividend increases. For the purposes of conciseness, I have focused only on those companies that have managed to boost dividends for at least ten years in a row.

The companies raising dividends last week include:

This list is not a recommendation to buy or sell. It is simply a list of companies that raised dividends last week, which also happen to have a ten year track record of annual dividend increases.

I like to see companies with established track records of annual dividend increases. I like it even better when they continue raising those dividends. However, I also like those dividend increases to be supported by fundamentals, like rising earnings per share, rising revenues and a sane dividend payout ratio. It is even better when great businesses are available at a decent entry price.

Relevant Articles:

- Nineteen Dividend Growth Stocks For Further Research
- A Record Week on Wall Street For Dividend Increases
- 17 Dividend Increases For Further Analysis
- Twelve Dividend Growth Stocks Raising Distributions to Investors Last Week