Eleven Dividend Growth Companies Raising Dividends Last Week

I review the list of dividend increases every week, as part of my monitoring process. I usually focus my attention on the companies with a ten year streak of annual dividend increases, and then review each company using my criteria. I am always on the lookout for new ideas, and to determine if my existing holdings are working. I also want to be ready to act quickly, when the right time arrives.

This exercise helps me to evaluate companies I already own, and see how they are doing. This is a helpful piece of the puzzle, that would be helpful when/if I decide to add to these companies at the right price.

This exercise also helps me identify companies for further research. A large part of the time is spent reviewing companies, screening for companies, and trying to learn more about companies, their business, etc. 

It is not glamorous at all, but dull and boring. 

But it does pay dividends.

Over the past week, there were several companies raising dividends. The companies include:

Avery Dennison Corporation (AVY) operates as a materials science and digital identification solutions company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Asia, Latin, America, and internationally. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 6.80% to $0.94/share. This is the 15th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 9.92%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $8.60/share in 2015 to $33.67/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $9.77/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 17.48 times forward earnings and yields 2.03%.

Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (AMP) operates as a diversified financial services company in the United States and internationally. The company offers financial planning and advice services to individual and institutional clients. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 8.10% to $1.60/share. This is the 20th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 9.86%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $8.60/share in 2015 to $33.67/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $36.81/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 12.66 times forward earnings and yields 1.25%.

Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (FIX) provides mechanical and electrical installation, renovation, maintenance, repair, and replacement services for the mechanical and electrical services industry in the United States. It operates through two segments: Mechanical and Electrical. 

The company increased quarterly dividends by 12.50% to $0.45/share. This is a 50% increase over the dividend paid during the same time last year. This is the 13th year of consecutive annual dividend increases for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, the company has managed to raise dividends at an annualized rate of 18.20%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $1.32/share in 2015 to $14.64/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $19.94/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 19.93 times forward earnings and yields 0.43%.

Home Bancshares, Inc. (HOMB) operates as the bank holding company for Centennial Bank that provides commercial and retail banking, and related financial services to businesses, real estate developers and investors, individuals, and municipalities in the United States. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 2.60% over the prior quarterly dividend to $0.20/share.  This is also an 11.10% hike over the dividend paid during the same time last year. This is the 14th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 15.67%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $1.01/share in 2015 to $2.01/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $2.27/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 12.18 times forward earnings and yields 2.80%.

Lithia Motors, Inc. (LAD) operates as an automotive retailer in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. It operates in two segments, Vehicle Operations and Financing Operations.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 3.80% to $0.55/share. This is the 15th year of consecutive annual dividend increases for this dividend achiever. This raise is also much lower than the ten year average of 13.10%

The company has managed to grow earnings from $6.96/share in 2015 to $29.70/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $32.77share in 2025.

The stock sells for 8.94 times forward earnings and yields 0.75%.

MetLife, Inc. (MET) is a financial services company, which provides insurance, annuities, employee benefits, and asset management services worldwide. It operates in six segments: Group Benefits; Retirement and Income Solutions; Asia; Latin America; Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and MetLife Holdings. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 4.10% to $0.5675/share. This is the 13th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 6.20%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $4.67/share in 2015 to $5.98/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $9.20/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 8.18 times forward earnings and yields 3%.

Nasdaq, Inc. (NDAQ) operates as a technology company that serves capital markets and other industries worldwide. It operates in three segments: Capital Access Platforms, Financial Technology, and Market Services. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 12.50% to $0.27/share. This is the 13th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 17.13%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $0.85/share in 2015 to $1.94/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $3.19/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 23.59 times forward earnings and yields 1.28%.

Parker-Hannifin Corporation (PH) manufactures and sells motion and control technologies and systems for various mobile, industrial, and aerospace markets worldwide. The company operates through two segments: Diversified Industrial and Aerospace Systems.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 10.40% to $1.80/share. This is the 69th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend king. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 11.90%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $7.08/share in 2015 to $22.13/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $26.73/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 22.37 times forward earnings and yields 1.09%.

Principal Financial Group, Inc. (PFG) provides retirement, asset management, and insurance products and services to businesses, individuals, and institutional clients worldwide. The company operates through Retirement and Income Solutions, Principal Asset Management, and Benefits and Protection segments.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 1.30% over the previous quarterly distribution to $0.76/share. This is a 7.04% raise over the dividend paid during Q2 2024. This is the 17th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 8%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $4.11/share in 2015 to $6.77/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $8.15/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 9.01 times forward earnings and yields 3.88%.

Sysco Corporation (SYY) engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. The company operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 5.90% to $0.54/share. This is the 49th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend aristocrat. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 5.70%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $1.16/share in 2015 to $3.90/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $4.55/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 15.58 times forward earnings and yields 2.81%.

Westamerica Bancorporation (WABC) operates as a bank holding company for the Westamerica Bank that provides various banking products and services to individual and commercial customers in the United States.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 4.50% to $0.46/share. This is the 34th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend champion. Over the past decade, it has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 1.48%.

The company has managed to grow earnings from $2.30/share in 2015 to $5.20/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $4.40/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 10.96 times forward earnings and yields 3.63%.

This of course is just a list, not a recommendation.

When I review companies, I look at ten year trends in:

1) Earnings per share

2) Dividend payout ratio

3) Dividends per share

4) Valuation

Since I have some experience evaluating dividend companies, I also modify my criteria based on the environment we are in and the availability of quality companies. If I see a company with a strong business model and certain characteristics that I like, I may require a dividend streak that is lower than a decade. I have also found success in looking beyond screening criteria by purchasing stocks a little above the borders contained in a screen.

It is important to be flexible, without being too lenient.

Relevant Articles:

- Eight Dividend Growth Stocks Raising Distributions Last Week

- Nine Companies Raising Dividends Last Week

- Four Dividend Increases In a Time of Tariffs

- Five Dividend Growth Stocks Raising Dividends Last Week

Do I Need Fixed Income?

Even so spoke the old farmer to his son:  A cow for her milk, a hen for her eggs, and a stock, by heck for her dividends. An orchard for fruit, bees for their honey, and stocks, besides for their dividends…” John Burr Williams, The Theory of Investment Value, 1938.

My retirement strategy is based on living off dividends in retirement. Dividends are more stable, predictable and reliable than share prices. Over time, dividends tend to grow above the rate of inflation, making them a great source of income for retirees.

I believe that one can retire when dividends exceed expenses at the dividend crossover point. At that point, the retiree can remain retired by cashing in those dividend checks.

Note that this is a simplistic view, because retirees also earn pension income. That just means you need to generate less in dividend income.

The base model is to live off dividends in retirement and ignore share price fluctuations. If you base your spending based on dividends, and spend only the dividends, you are very unlikely to run out of money in retirement. Dividends also tend to follow current economic conditions, rather than some historical backtest. In other words, you are living off actual cash returns generated today, and know exactly how much your investments have generated for your, and how much you can spend.

We are of course talking about having a diversified equity portfolio.

My logical way of living off dividends is basically inspired by my general simple way of life. 

I buy a house for the ability to live there. I buy a car for the ability to use it for transporation. I buy land for the ability to harvest crops from it. I buy businesses for their cashflows that I can use. Hence, I buy partial ownership pieces of many businesses for the cashflows from profits that their share with me.

All of this got me thinking if I really need fixed income for my retirement portfolio. After all, fixed income is sold to retirees as a way to smooth over share price fluctuations. But this is mostly for retirees who sell stock to cover expenses. I do not plan on selling stock in retirement and be exposed to the ups and downs of the stock market fluctuations. I plan on living off dividends. I focus on the stability of dividends, and make sure the portfolio that generates them is well put together. I do not care about stock price fluctuations, and hence I do not think I really need fixed income to help me stay the course during share price declines. That's because that fixed income also costs me in terms of opportunity costs and reduced dividend income and capital gains on stocks. Plus fixed income loses to inflation over time, and as retirees live longer they are also more exposed to longer cycles of inflation over time.

So if the portfolio generates $30,000 in annual dividends, and I need $30,000 in annual dividends to live off, I am retired. In the highly unlikely event that I have a Great Depression, I may experience some dividend cuts. But the Great Depression took 3 - 4 years to unfold, so if it did happen I could adjust, particularly as cost of living actually got cheaper too.

In the other modern day time, the Global Financial Crisis, dividends from a diversified portfolio also declined a little in 2009. Dividends actually increased in 2007 and 2008. But again, cost of living also got cheaper too. 

These of course are extreme outliers that happened in less than 5% of years over the past 100 years. These are rare, but if they do happen, living off dividends still works. I could argue that by following spending based on dividends, one can adjust lifestyle in retirement quickly, and thus avoid guessing about whether they will run out of money or not.

This simple idea of living off dividends in retirement is logical. Living in retirement is similar to living during my work years. If I make $30,000/year when I work, the most I get to spend is $30,000/year. If I get laid off next year, and have to find a lower paying job making $25,000/year, I now have to live off $25,000/year.  If I get promoted to making $40,000/year, I get to base my spending on the larger income. We are speaking plainly here, to illustrate a point, and not get into the nitty gritty ideas from here of course. Most of us who have accumulated some funds for retirement are actually living below our means, in order to save and invest consistently over many decades...

Let's take the basic model of living on income when working. When I generate $30,000 in annual dividend income in retirement, the most I get to spend is $30,000/year. It's simply logical.

Having that dividend machine generate enough money to sustain a comfortable retirement is therefore the item that generates our cashflows. The important part is to build it right, build it tight, and ensure you are building on a stable foundation. This means diversify accross sectors and industries, focus on quality, and make sure fundamentals are good and growing, while also avoiding paying too much of a price for these assets. Make sure you build some redundancies in place, such as margins of safety in valuation and in dividend coverage and in diversification accross industries an time.

After this lengthy introduction of some basic ideas, let's discuss what I am trying to ask myself mostly. Do I need fixed income?

Imagine that you own $100,000 worth of stocks today. You expect that your portfolio would generate $2,000 in annual dividends this year, which would also grow at or above the rate of inflation over time as well. 

In other words, your would likely collect around $10,000 over the next 5 years and $20,000 over the next decade.

In other words, if I own $100,000 in stocks today, I also have a future claim to $10,000 in 5 years or $20,000 in a decade.

If we extend this period to 15 years, we are looking at a future claim of $30,000 and if we look at 20 years, we are looking at a future claim of $40,000.

That simple calculation took number of years we are waiting for and multiplied by a $2,000 dividend payment. I ignored inflation, but I also ignored the power of dividend growth, which has been higher than inflation over time. In other words, I was too conservative in this estimation.

Let's say I own $100,000 in dividend paying stocks. But I decide that I also want to have fixed income. Hence I sell $10,000, and buy a staggered maturity of bonds. Let's call it a bond ladder, where $2,000 mature each year for 5 years. Or we can sell $20,000, and have $2,000 maturing each year for 10 years. 

You can see that we are getting a cash inflow of $2,000/year from these bonds maturing. I am ignoring interest, but I am also ignoring inflation as well. We will also be generating dividends as well.

Alternatively, one could own $100,000 in dividend paying stocks, and simply accumulate the dividends in cash over a period of time to get to the desired amount of fixed income. But I am questioning if I need fixed income at all. I believe in owning the machine that prints the cash, and value it highly; I do not really believe in just stashing cash itself, and lose to inflation, taxes and opportunity cost.

But I will get to my point now.

I believe that these future dividend income streams are ready sources of cashflows. They come at predictable time intervals, and I have somewhat of a predictable certainty as to their amount, timing and extent. While dividends are not liabilities, they are relatively certain to be paid out in the future and received by the shareholders.

Hence, I do not view the need for fixed income in a dividend portfolio. I do not need relative certainty of bonds that would provide income and maturity at certain times, because I believe dividend payments provide that, overall.

I do not believe I need fixed income, because I view those dividend payment streams as something as close to a fixed income substitute in terms of cashflows as fixed income. Though they are not they same.

We can argue that dividends are not guaranteed. However, if history is of any guide, dividends from a diversified portfolio are rarely cut. If you look at the data going as far back as 100 years ago, the only time that dividends declined were during the Great Depression, 1937 recession, 2008 Global Financial Crisis. 

Also, dividends are much more stable, reliable and easier to forecast than share prices. They are less volatile than share prices. The best part is that dividends tend to grow above the rate of inflation over time. Bonds do not do that (unless we are talking TIPs of course, but they are a very small portion of the total bond market). The big risk with fixed income is that over time it does lose purchasing power. And inflationary shocks have been much more prevalent in the past 100 years than deflationary shocks.

Those dividends of course are derived from company profits. Under the current regime, in order for a company to end up with $2 in dividends per share for the year, they are probably making around $5/share in profits. So they earn that $5/share, and reinvest a portion in the business to maintain and grow their position in the marketplace. 

Hence, if I own $100,000 of stock and expect say $20,000 in dividends over the next decade, I am effectively having an 80% - 85% allocation to equities and 15% - 20% allocation to fixed income. Albeit corporate fixed income, and not the Treasury Bills type that is Guaranteed by the US Government. While it's not guaranteed however, it's also slightly better because those cashflows from dividends are likely to grow above rate of inflation. And even during a Great Depression, they were still being paid.

If we go back to individual asset allocation, and personal financial circumstances, it is likely that ones overall financial picture is even more conservative. For example, if I was receiving $1,000/month in Social Security/Pension income, I am essentially the owner of an asset that's likely generating $12,000/year, which would likely be worth roughly $200,000, if not more. (my estimate for a cost of an inflation adjusted annuity that is government provided and secured for a male in their 60s under current interest rate regime, assuming it was available for purchase).

If I were still in the accumulation phase of course, fully employed and adding money on a regular bsis, I am basically underallocated to equities, even if 100% allocated to equities. I think of it this way - imagine I started work at 25, investing $1,000/month in equities. I would invest $1,000 in equities every month for the next 40 years. This means that by age 35, I'd have invested $120,000 in equities at cost, but have 30 more years worth of contributions (value of $360,000). On a lifetime accumulation basis, using simplistic math, I'm roughly only about 20% allocated to equities. This way of thinking could obviously crumble under a Great Depression type scenario with a 25% unemployment and a long several bear market. But it's nevertheless a useful model I have used for myself as I was building out my equity portfolio in the accumulation phase.Which actually included a few big bad bear markets along the way. With many more to come in the future, or so I am promised.

These are some random thoughts I am having, that I wanted to put down on paper.

The gist of it is that if I hold $80,000 of equities today and $20,000 in fixed income, I would roughly expect to receive $20,000 + cash from the bonds minus inflation and taxes over the course of say the next decade (as those bonds mature). 

But if I held $100,000 in equities today, I would also receive something like $20,000 minus inflation and taxes over the course of the next decade.

While claims to cash for equities and fixed income have different priorities as to their payments, and terms do differ when we look at it at a granular detail level, they do not really differ as much when we take a big picture look. Under some scenarios, like Great Depression types, fixed income claims could turn out to be superior, especially in a deflationary type scenario.

Under many other scenarios however, fixed income claims could turn out to be inferior, especially in an inflationary type scenario. There is also a steep long-term opportunity cost to fixed income, under most scenarios as well. That $1 you keep in bonds could have turned to a lot of money if it were in equities instead. Under most scenarios that is of course.

Nothing is a one size fits all approach. After all, owning fixed income is an insurance against the unknown unknowns. Under most situations and scenarios, owning some fixed income could turn out to be an inferior strategy to owning 100% equities. However, under some circumstances, owning fixed income could provide some time in case things do not work out as expected.

There are pros and cons to everything you end up investing in. In a way, investing is like buying a house with or without insurance. If you hold that house for say 30 years, and it never burns down, you ask yourself "why did I waste all that money on insurance". I would have been better off never paying those insurance companies.

However, if your house does burn, you do tell yourself how lucky you are to limit losses because you have insurance. (sorry I am kind of upset about the loss of property and life in California with recent events, but don't want to upset you with my example)

So basically, my short answer is it depends. I try to think of trade-offs, and what could go wrong or right, and the path it takes to get there. 

One could also give me the pushback of course that I am thinking of this after we had a 16 year bull market off the lows in 2009. I could also be tempting fate with this post. I doubt I would have written this post in March 2009. Though posting this in April 2025 does seem somewhat brave. 

How did I come up with this idea in the first place?

I was thinking of a scenario, where someone is within 5 years of their projected retirement date. Under the dividend growth investing strategy, you can retire when your dividends exceed expenses. I do not really think one needs fixed income, unless they are saving for a particular near term expense over the next year or two or three. Fixed income is probably even less needed if one already gets social security/pension in retirement. One may argue that a one year's worth of expenses for an emergency fund should be in cash/short-term fixed income. Though I could also argue that this could be unneccessary as well.

However, if I had a portfolio that yields say 3% today, and I needed a 3% yield to cover expenses, I could theoretically have 5 years worth of expenses if I took those dividends in cash for say 4 - 5 years and put them in fixed income. I am ignoring the effect of compounding and new contributions for the sake of the argument I am trying to make in this article. But this is the type of thought process that led me to this article in the first place.

Traditional retirement strategies that rely on selling assets in retirement however tend to focus on minimizing share price fluctuations. Therefore, they are based on adding fixed income. This reduces "volatility" in portfolio values that is needed to smoothen out the journey through the ups and downs, when you have to sell to fund retirement.  However, this also reduces your expected returns as well. I am not a fan of selling stock in order to live off in retirement. I would much rather live off the dividends, which are returns generated today, I could live off. Living off dividends gives me a return on investment today, which is known and easier to calculate and rely on. Hence, it is easy to know how much I can safely withdraw from my portfolio for living expenses, based on current market conditions. Not based on some historical backtest using information from periods that are no longer applicable.

I would argue that too much fixed income can actually be detrimental to retirees, especially as we are living longer, on average. In this case inflation and higher taxes on interest (vs. dividends and capital gains) mean that you are getting much less than expected and that stability is largely illusory. Of course, one could argue that fixed income could be helping people's ability to hold, and keep them invested. Not everyone has a high risk tolerance. But on the other hand, the most important thing is long-term stability and growth. The short-term swings up and down are largely noise. Getting too caught up in them could make one feel good in the short-run, but at the expense of the long-run.

I understand that from a behavioral perspective, it is easier to hold on to a portfolio that has some equity and some fixed income exposure. So perhaps reducing expected returns and suffering from inflation on those fixed income is the price to pay to endure the inevitable ups and downs in the markets and the economies. Not everyone can stick to a 100% equity allocation. However, it is good to think through assumptions, test our understanding of things, and write them down on paper, in order to try and learn, and decide for ourselves if we have some gaps that need to be overcome.

Note I have had this idea brewing on the back of my mind for many years. I do expect many to disagree, and that's fine. Not everyone has the risk tolerance to be 100% in equities. I also like that I am posting this article during turbulent time in the markets. It's braver, versus posting it when markets are at all-time-highs.

Nine Companies Raising Dividends Last Week

I review the list of dividend increases as part of my monitoring process.

There were 15 companies that increased dividends last week. Ten of those companies have each managed to increase dividends for at least ten consecutive years. 

The companies include:

Bar Harbor Bankshares (BHB) operates as the holding company for Bar Harbor Bank & Trust that provides banking and nonbanking products and services primarily to consumers and businesses.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 6.70% to $0.32/share. This is the 22nd consecutive year of dividend increases for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 6.95%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $1.69/share in 2015 to $2.86/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $2.92/share in 2025. 

The stock sells for 9.90 times forward earnings and yields 4.14%.

Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) engages in the operation of membership warehouses.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 12.10% to $1.10/share. This is the 21st consecutive year of dividend increases for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 12.59%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $5.41/share in 2015 to $16.60/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $18.07/share in 2025. 

The stock sells for 55 times forward earnings and yields 0.47%.

Donegal Group Inc., (DGICA) (DGICB) an insurance holding company, provides commercial and personal lines of property and casualty coverages. It operates through three segments: Investment Function, Commercial Lines of Insurance, and Personal Lines of Insurance. 

It raised dividends on its A shares by 5.80% to $0.1825/share. It raised dividends on its B shares by 6.50% to $0.1650/share.

The company has raised dividends for 23 years in a row and is a member of the dividend achievers list. 

Over the past decade, it has managed to grow distributions at an annualized rate of 2.79% for the A shares to 2.92% for the B shares.

That's a lot of of complexity for such a slow rate of dividend growth.

The A stock sells for 12.60 times forward earnings and yields 3.78%. 

The B stock sells for 12.06 times earnings and yields 3.73%

H.B. Fuller Company (FUL) formulates, manufactures, and markets adhesives, sealants, coatings, polymers, tapes, encapsulants, additives, and other specialty chemical products. It operates through three segments: Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives; Engineering Adhesives; and Construction Adhesives. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 5.60% to $0.235/share. This is the 56th consecutive year of dividend increases for this dividend king. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 6.61%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $1.72/share in 2015 to $2.37/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $4.07/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 13.21 times forward earnings and yields 1.75%.

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) engages in the research and development, manufacture, and sale of various products in the healthcare field worldwide. It operates in two segments, Innovative Medicine and MedTech.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 4.80% to $1.30/share. This is the 63rd consecutive year of dividend increases for this dividend king. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 5.93%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $5.56/share in 2015 to $5.84/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $10.57/share in 2025. Note this is adjusted EPS. For comparison purposes, teh 2024 adjusted EPS was $9.98.

The stock sells for 14.50 times forward earnings and yields 3.30%.

Sonoco Products Company (SON) designs, develops, manufactures, and sells various engineered and sustainable packaging products in the United States, Europe, Canada, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Packaging and Industrial Paper Packaging.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 1.90% to $0.53/share. This is the 42nd consecutive year of dividend increases for this dividend champion. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 5.01%.

The company's earnings went from $2.46/share in 2015 to $1.66/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $5.94/share in 2025. 

The stock sells for 7.39 times forward earnings and yields 4.74%.

Star Group, L.P. (SGU) provides home heating oil and propane products and services to residential and commercial customers in the United States

The partnership hiked its quarterly distributions by 7.20% to $0.1850/unit. This marks the 13th year of continuous annual increases in the Company’s distribution. It has a ten year annualized distribution growth of 7% over the past decade.

The partnership yields 5.41%.

The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV) provides a range of commercial and personal property, and casualty insurance products and services to businesses, government units, associations, and individuals in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments: Business Insurance, Bond & Specialty Insurance, and Personal Insurance. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 4.80% to $1.10/share. This is the 21st consecutive year of dividend increases for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 6.80%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $10.99/share in 2015 to $21.76/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $18.27/share in 2025. 

The stock sells for 14 times forward earnings and yields 1.72%.

United Bancorp, Inc. (UBCP) operates as the bank holding company for Unified Bank that provides commercial and retail banking services in Ohio.

The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.185/share. This is a 5.71% increase over the dividend paid during the same time last year. This is the 12th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 7.89%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $0.65/share in 2015 to $1.27/share in 2024.

The company is projected to earn $1.40/share in 2025. 

The stock sells for 9.45 times forward earnings and yields 6.84%

My Retirement Strategy

My retirement strategy is based on living off dividends.

A successful retirement strategy is dependent on the asset returns you hold in your portfolio.

Dividends remove the guesswork of how much I can withdraw from a portfolio to live off.

I know what the dividend income is, and thus I know how much I can spend per year.

My "withdrawal rate" is not based on some study that backtests, curve-fits and optimizes historical data until it confesses.

My withdrawal rate is based on current information, available today, adjusted automatically for todays conditions.

Dividends represent a return on investment, which is generated on a consistent and predictable schedule.

The amount and timing for dividends is predictable and consistent, which makes them ideal sources of income in retirement

Dividends also tend to grow above the rate of inflation over time, which means that income not only protects purchasing power but also grows it.

A retirement plan based on living off dividends will never run out of money.

You don't have to think about sequence of return risk, because you don't have to sell.

My risk of running out of money is lowered, because I take current conditions into perspective, and adjust my spending based on the dividend paid today. I do not need to sell 4% of my portfolio value if we sell at nosebleed valuations and my yield is much lower. I could also spend more than 4% if valuations are really low, and my yield is higher.

Dividends provide excellent signaling of the current business conditions.

If the economy is doing great, businesses will be earning more and paying higher dividends. I may even generate more in dividends than I need.

If the economy is doing terribly, and we get a once in a generation depression that knocks down profits, to the point like dividends are lowered en masse, I will curtail my spending to the amount of dividends received. That flexibility, and adaptability to the current environment, versus relying on a bulky academic model, is really appealing to me.

I love the idea of living off the returns generated today, not the historical or theoretical returns we read about im a study .

That being said, I focus on the dividend income, and make sure my portfolio is constructed intelligently.

I make sure that the dividend income is diversified, comes from many sources, comes from businesses that grow earnings, that have adequate margins of safety in dividends, and keep fees and costs low.

I do not really care about price fluctuations of my portfolio, because they represent "opinions", which can go up too much in a frenzy or down too much in a depression.

I hope you enjoyed this overview on my retirement strategy.

Relevant Articles:

- Dividend income is more stable than capital gains

- Sequence of returns matters in retirement planning

- Living off dividends in retirement

- Four Percent Rule for Dividend Investing in Retirement

Four Dividend Increases In a Time of Tariffs

The last two weeks have been a little turbulent. Those tariff news really seem to have spooked markets worldwide. 

Luckily, we are Dividend Growth Investors, so we stay the course, because we are paid to hold. Those of us in the accumulation phase get excited during market declines, because that means that future income is available on sale. This is where having a ready list of companies can be helpful when we get the big sale on stocks.

Those of us in the retirement phase can simply sit back, relax, and enjoy the growing stream of dividends from their diversified portfolios. 

As many of you know, I review the list of dividend increases every week. Last week, we had several companies that raised their annual dividends, like clockwork. Dividend increases from these consistent dividend payers signals confidence in their business models. Some of these companies have paid and increased dividends for many decades, withnessing cold wars, inflations, wars, oil shocks, embargoes, and possibly a ton of other bad events. Yet, they have adapted and thrived. 

Selling a branded product or service, and having strong competitive advantages and a good culture probably helped too.

Either way, there were four companies that raised dividends last week, which also have managed to increase dividends for at least ten consecutive years. Those companies include:

Agree Realty Corporation (ADC) is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that is involved in the acquisition and development of properties net leased to industry-leading, omni-channel retail tenants.

The company raised its monthly dividend by 1.20% to $0.2560/share. This represents a 2.40% increase over the dividend paid during the same time last year.  This is the 13th year of consecutive annual dividend increases for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 5.82%.

The REIT managed to grow Funds from Operations (FFO) from $2.40/share in 2015 to $3.78/share in 2024. 

The REIT expects to generate $4.23/share in FFO in 2025.

The stock sells for 17.70 times forward FFO and yields 4.05%. 

Aon plc, (AON) is a professional services firm, which provides a range of risk and human capital solutions worldwide.

The company raised quarterly dividends by 10.40% to $0.745/share.

This is the 14th year of consecutive annual dividend increases for this dividend achiever. Over the past decade, it managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 11.06%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $4.93/share in 2015 to $12.55/share in 2024.

Aon is expected to earn $17.18/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 21.90 times forward earnings and yields 0.79%.

Fastenal Company (FAST) engages in the wholesale distribution of industrial and construction supplies in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. 

Fastenal raised its quarterly dividends to $0.44/share. This is a 2.30% increase over the dividend paid in Q1, 2025. This is also a 12.82% increase over the dividend paid during the same time last year.

This dividend aristocrat company has increased annual dividends for 26 years in a row. Over the past decade, it managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 12.05%.

The company managed to grow earnings from $0.89/share in 2015 to $2.01/share in 2024.

The company is expected to earn $2.16/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 37.25 times forward earnings and yields 2.13%.

The Procter & Gamble Company (PG) engages in the provision of branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. The company operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. 

The company raised quarterly dividends by 5% to $1.0568/share. This marked the 69th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend king. Over the past five years, P&G has managed to increase dividends at an annualized rate of 6.18%. The ten year average is 4.57%.

Earnings per share have increased from $4.19 in 2014 to $6.18 in 2024. The company is expected to generate $6.89/share in earnings in 2025.

The stock sells for 23.25 times forward earnings. The stock yields 2.67%. Check my review of Procter & Gamble here.

Relevant Articles:

- Procter & Gamble (PG) Increases Dividends for 69th Consecutive Year

- Two Recent Dividend Increases and Five Future Dividend Increases

- Dividend Investors are Getting Paid for Holding Dividend Stocks

- Dividend Investors are getting paid for waiting

Compounding Dividends For The Long Run

The stock market has been turbulent the past month or so. 

As a dividend growth investor, I usually ignore the ups and downs of the market. Stocks can go up, stocks can go down, but my dividends are paid on time, and increased too. Getting paid to hold is definitely a great strategy to stay invested and ignore the noise.

I recently saw some interesting research on dividends from Hartford Funds on the power of dividends.

Going back to 1960, they found that reinvested dividends accounted for 85% of historical stock market returns. Reinvesting those growing dividends into more stock definitely turbocharges the power of compounding.

A $10,000 investment in S&P 500 in 1960 turned to $982,000 by 2024. If you reinvested those dividends however, your total amounts to $6.42 Million. Compounding dividends matter.

It's fascinating to see how dividends impacted returns decade by decade. 

Dividends have contributed roughly a third of returns on average per year. During a bull market, dividends have a lower contribution, and everyone seems to forget about them. During a bear market or a flat market however, dividends shine and provide staying power for the patient long-term investor. 

While share prices can fluctuate up and down, and are difficult to forecast, dividends are much more stable, predictable and easier to rely on. This is why dividends are the perfect source of income for retirees. Plus they are tax-advantaged versus other sources of income and tend to grow above the rate of inflation over time as well.

You can see that during the 1970s and 2000s, when stock prices went largerly nowehere, dividends contributed a lions share of total returns for investors. During massive bull markets, dividends still contributed and held their own.

That being said, average dividends yields have been decreasing in the US. Notably, that's an end result of share prices rising too fast in the past 15 years, but also an increase in the way that companies distribute excess cashflow to shareholders. Notably, since the 1980s companies are "returning cash" increasingly through share buybacks and less through dividends.

This is a chart of S&P 500 dividend yields over the past 50 years:

You can see dividends yields are the lowest since late 2021. In late 2021 dividend yields were lowest since 2000..

You can see that since the 1990s, the amount of share buybacks has increased faster than dividends. However, dividends are much more stable and upwards moving up while buybacks are much more volatile and cyclical. Companies tend to do them when they are flush with cash, but share prices are higher, and tend to discontinue them when the share prices are low, but the outlook is murky.

The Hartford Funds also found out that higher yielding companies tended to deliver great performance over the past 90+years:

That's definitely fascinating, and interesting to observe on a decade-by-decade basis.

Last but not least, it's fascinating to observe the performance of dividend growth stocks. Those are the companies that tend to raise dividends to shareholders.

Long-time readers know the research from Ned David Research, which shows that dividend growth stocks rock, relative to companies that do not pay dividends, those that cut dividends and those that have high yields.

I still view a solid track record of dividend increases as a sign of a quality business with good management. However, I do look under the hood to understand what I get into, and I am selective. I focus on substance over form.

As far as the future is concerned, I believe US Equities will likely keep growing earnings over time, which would fuel dividend increases over time as well. This would likely lead to growth in share prices as well, although those do tend to oscilate up and down, above and below any estimates of intrinsic value. I do believe one needs to be careful about what they buy, as not every company can be safely bought and held. Plus, you need to evaluate valuation as even the best company in the world is not worth massively overpaying for. If you do, you may not make much in terms of money, even if you were right about the fundamentals.

Procter & Gamble (PG) Increases Dividends for 69th Consecutive Year

The Procter & Gamble Company (PG) provides branded consumer packaged goods worldwide. It operates through five segments: Beauty; Grooming; Health Care; Fabric & Home Care; and Baby, Feminine & Family Care. Procter & Gamble is a member of the elite dividend kings list, which includes companies that have managed to raise annual dividends for at least 50 years in a row. That's not a small feat.

The company increased quarterly dividends by 75% to $1.0568/share yesterday. This dividend increase marked the 69th consecutive year that P&G has increased its dividend and the 135th consecutive year that P&G has paid a dividend since its incorporation in 1890. (Source)

Management states that this dividend increase reinforces their commitment to return cash to shareholders, many of whom rely on the steady, reliable income earned with their investment in P&G.

The table below shows the year that the company raised dividends, the new increased quarterly dividend payment for that year, and the rate of dividend increase for the year. It focuses on the past 35 years of dividend increases for Procter & Gamble:

Over the past five years, P&G has managed to increase dividends at an annualized rate of 6.18%. The ten year average is 4.57%.

Earnings per share have increased from $4.19 in 2014 to $6.18 in 2024. The company is expected to generate $6.89/share in earnings in 2025.

That being said, the core business is very stable, which means that long-term earnings power should not be affected. However, earnings per share have not grown by much over the past decade. The slowdown in dividend growth is a direct result of the slowdown in earnings per share growth. 

In the past decade, the dividend payout ratio increased from 58% in 2014 to 62% in 2024. A lower payout is always a plus, since it leaves room for consistent dividend growth minimizing the impact of short-term fluctuations in earnings.

Based on forward earnings, it appears that the forward dividend payout ratio is at 61%, which means that the dividend is sustainable.

The number of shares outstanding has been decreasing gradually over the past decade too.

It is interesting to look at the company's performance over the past decade for perspective. The stock sold for approximately $82/share a decade ago, had earned $4.19/share and paid a quarterly dividend of 64.36 cents/share, for an annual dividend yield of 3.10%. The P/E was at 19.60.

Fast forward to today, and the company is paying a quarterly dividend of  $1.0568/share, for a total yield on cost of 5.15%. If we take dividend reinvestment into consideration, a $1,000 investment ten years ago would be generating $68.30 in annual dividend income today.

At the current price, the stock sells for 23.25 times forward earnings. The stock yields 2.67%. 

Two Recent Dividend Increases and Five Future Dividend Increases

Last week, there were nine companies that raised dividends in the US. Only two of those companies have managed to raise dividends for at least a decade however. The week before that, there were seven companies that raised dividends last week in the US. None of them have raised dividends for at least 5 years in a row however.

That's consistent with prior years however.

The companies that raised dividends last week that also have managed to raise dividends for at least a decade include:

Bank OZK (OZK) operates as a full-service Arkansas state-chartered bank that provides retail and commercial banking services in the United States. 

The bank raised quarterly dividends by 2.40% to $0.43/share. This is a 10.26% increase over the dividend paid during the same time last year. This is due to the fact that the company raises dividends every quarter. This dividend aristocrat has raised dividends for 29 years in a row. It has a ten year annualized dividend growth rate of 12.90%.

Between 2015 and 2024, the company grew earnings from $2.10/share to $6.16/share.

The company is expected to earn $5.94/share in 2025.

The stock sells for 6.40 times forward earnings and yields 4.50%.

Trinity Bank, N.A. (TYBT) provides personal and business banking products and services in Texas.

The bank raised semi-annual dividends by 2.20% to $0.95/share. This is the 13th year of consecutive annual dividend increases for this dividend contender. Over the past decade, the company has managed to grow dividends at an annualized rate of 10.80%.

The company has managed to increase earnings from $2.91/share in 2014 to $7.36/share in 2023.

The stock sells for 11.40 times earnings and yields 2.23%.

As far as the rest of April, I expect that the following notable and consistent dividend growth payers to announce an increase to their quarterly dividends:

Ameriprise Financial (AMP) - I expect a ten cent raise in the quarterly dividned to $1.58/share. This will be the the 21st consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever.

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) - I expect a 4 cent raise in the quarterly dividend to $1.28/share. This will be the 63rd consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend king.

Costco (COST) - I expect a 13 cent raise in the quarterly dividend to $1.29/share. This will be the the 21st consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever.

Procter & Gamble (PG) - I expect a 5 cent raise in the quarterly dividend to $1.06/share. This will be the 69th consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend king.

Traveler's (TRV) - I expect a 5 cent raise in the quarterly dividend to $1.10/share. This will be the the 21st consecutive annual dividend increase for this dividend achiever.

I came up with these estimates by lookiing at near term trends in earnings, the payout ratios and the latest trends in the dividend payments. My crystal ball is cloudy.

Thank you for reading!

In bear markets, stocks return to their rightful owners

 “In bear markets, stocks return to their rightful owners.” 

- J.P. Morgan

I love this quote. It summarizes a ton of insights into a simple, succint message. 

There is a lot to unpack here.

In short, it means that when stocks fall down in price, panicked sellers tend to dispose of their holdings in desperation. Perhaps they are scared of market declines due to being overextended or not knowing that stocks can decline in price. Those are both expensive lessons, and then some. 

The investors who take those shares from the panicked sellers are those who are patient and disciplined. The buyers are long-term investors, who stick to their plan, and buy when they have money to invest. These rightful owners are financially stable and buy cheap when there is blood on the streets. They are financially stable because they live below their means, have a long-term mindset, have their financial house in order, and as a result they have a surplus to invest every month. 

Those patient long-term investors with strong conviction often buy stocks at lower prices from panic-sellers, as seen in historical bear markets. It's a story as old as time. It's just that participants change.

Succumbing to emotions can be dangerous for investors, both when stocks are roaring high and when stocks are declining accross the board. 

In order to succeed at investing, you need to develop and stick to a disciplined strategy through thick or thin. 

Readers of this site stick to a strategy of dividend growth investing. Focusing on quality companies that have increased dividends for a long period of time, investing regularly at good valuations, and maintaining a long-term diversified portfolio are the winning ingredients to long-term success. Also, focusing on the dividend, and understanding the fundamental drivers behind them and their safety, while also looking for value, can greatly aid in the process of long-term value creation.

In addition, ignoring noise, but focusing on the stability of dividends is a good jedi mind-trick that keeps one calm and invested.

As a Dividend Growth Investor, I view share price declines as opportunities to acquire quality assets at a good price. Future income is available on sale when share prices drop. This is something you want to see in the accumulation phase. For each $1,000 that you invest, you are increasing forward annual dividend income by $20 - $40. That dividend income will likely grow above the rate of inflation over time. Reinvesting those dividends further turbocharges dividend income growth. You keep stacking to income streams, brick by brick, until you hit the coveted dividend crossover point. The dividend crossover point is the point at which dividend income exceeds expenses. You are financially independent, job optional, perhaps even an early retiree at that point.

If one is retired, then they are living off the dividends from a diversified portfolio. They can ignore the noise and enjoy the fruits of their labor. Those dividends are more stable, predictable and reliable than share prices, which makes them a perfect source of income for retirees. Dividends from diversified portfolios rarely decline, but they tend to grow above rate of inflation over time, and are taxed preferentially to other sources of income (e.g. fixed income, labor etc). Perhaps you also earn some social security and pension income too.  And perhaps even you have a paid off home.

In times like these I am happy to be a Dividend Growth Investor.

I focus on the dividend payments, which are much more stable, predictable and reliable than share prices.

The focus on dividends makes me do the work on fundamentals and valuation and helps me stay invested.

Anywho, I think that this too shall pass.

Relevant Articles:

- The value of experience

- Use these tools within your control to get rich

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Happy Coca-Cola Dividend Day Warren Buffett

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway just received a  dividend check for $204 million dollars from Coca-Cola.

Berkshire Hathaway owns 400 million shares of Coca-Cola (KO), which are projected to generate $816 million in annual dividend income. 

This comes out to roughly $2,235,616.43 in dividend income per day, $93,150.68 dollars in dividend income per hour, $1,552.51 dollars in dividend income for Berkshire Hathaway every minute, or almost $25.87 every single second. 

Those shares have a cost basis of $1.29 billion dollars, and were acquired between 1988 – 1994. This comes out to $3.25/share. The annual dividend payment produces an yield on cost of over 62.77%. This means that Berkshire receives its original cost back every other year in dividends alone, while still retaining full ownership of its shares. This is why I believe that Warren Buffett is a closet dividend investor.

Since 1994, Buffett has received $28.76/share in total dividend income from Coca-Cola.

That is $11.504 billion in dividend income, against a total cost of $1.299 billion, which was allocated to buy stakes in other businesses and shares.

His Coca-Cola stock is worth $28.60 billion today. Given the fact that Coca-Cola has also repurchased stock over the years, it also means that his ownership in Coca-Cola has increased over time, without adding a single dime.

This is a testament to the power of long-term dividend investing, where time in market is the investors best ally, not timing the market. If you can select a business which is run by able and honest management, which has solid competitive advantages, and which is available at a good price today, one needs to only sit and let the power of compounding do the heavy lifting for them. As Buffett likes to say, time is a great ally for the good business. In the case of Coca-Cola, the past 33 years have been a great time to buy and hold the stock. The company has been able to tap emerging markets in Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America like never before. As a result, it has been able to receive a higher share of the worldwide drinks market, which has also been expanding as well. If you add in strategic acquisitions, new product development, cost containment initiatives and streamlining of operations, you have a very powerful force for delivering solid shareholder returns. With dividend investing your are rewarded for smart decisions you have made years before.

If they closed the stock market for a period of 10 years, Buffett would still be earning steady cashflow from his investment in Coca-Cola. This is because ten years from now, the company would likely be earning more than what it is earning today, and would likely be distributing more in dividend income than it is paying to shareholders today. Receiving a huge dividend check every three months is a reminder that you are a shareholder in a real company with real products that are consumed by billions of consumers worldwide. The stock is not a lottery ticket but a partial ownership in a company, which entitles you to a share of the profits being paid out to you as a shareholder in the form of dividends.

At the end of the day, if you identify a solid business, that has lasting power for the next 20 – 30 years, the job of the investor is to purchase shares at attractive values, and hold on to it. This slow and steady approach might seem unexciting initially, but just like with the story of the slow-moving tortoise beating the fast moving hare, the power of compounding would work miracles for the patient dividend investor.

In the case of Warren Buffett's investment in Coca-Cola, he is able to recover his original purchase price in dividends alone, every two years. Even if Coca-Cola goes to zero tomorrow, he has generates a substantial returns from dividends alone, which have flown to Berkshire's coffers, and have been invested in a variety of businesses that will benefit Berkshire Hathaway's shareholders for generations to come.

Currently, Coca-Cola is selling for 24.23 times forward earnings and yields 2.85%. This dividend king has managed to increase dividends for 62 years in a row.  

There were only 46 companies in the US, which have gained membership into the exclusive list of dividend kings, as of early 2025. 

Over the past decade, Coca-Cola has managed to increase dividends by 4.70%/year.  This is much better than the raises I have received at work over the past decade, despite the fact that I have routinely spent 55 - 60 hour weeks at the office.


Relevant Articles:

- Coca-Cola: A wide-moat dividend growth stock to buy and hold
- Warren Buffett Investing Resource Page
- Seven wide-moat dividends stocks to consider
- Warren Buffett’s Dividend Stock Strategy
- The importance of yield on cost