Top Companies Reporting Dividend Increases

By Floyd Saunders, The Author of Five Paths To Wealth,Family Financial Freedom and Figuring Out Wall Street.

If you were an investor in 2021 it has been a fantastic year for anybody buying stocks that pay an increasing dividend. There are many companies announcing stronger than expected dividend increases. I can’t cover all of the stocks with increasing dividends so I focus on those select companies that have paid increasing dividends every year for 25 years or more, Dividend Aristocrats and the even smaller list of stocks with a history of paying increasing dividends for more than 50 years, Dividend Kings.

Why Dividend Increases Matter

Dividends are the foundation of your goal to reach Financial Independence Retire Early (FIRE). As you continuously invest in dividend growth stocks you will grow your passive income to the point where you can live off of that income and retire before your normal retirement age.

Why dividend growth stocks?

1. Growth.

You must own stocks that continue to grow dividends, so you can reinvest those dividends and get compounding returns. Without growth, your dividend income stream will lose out to the effects of inflation. And right now inflation is a problem we haven’t really seen in several years.

2 Low Cost to Entry

With stock brokerage firms and investment companies slashing trading fees to $0.00, you have the lowest cost of entry to create an additional source of passive income.

3 Fractional Shares

Most brokers and investing apps now offer the ability to buy fractional shares. You can invest $20.00 and put $5.00 in each of top four dividend stocks covered below.

4 Dividend Reinvestment

The power of dividend reinvestment is where you put compounding returns to work for you. When the dividend reinvestment feature is turned on you have the opportunity to reinvest your dividends to continue to grow that income stream, by acquiring more shares.

5. Dividend Taxation

Your dividends receive preferential tax treatment, capped at rate of just 15%.

Dividend Increases in October 2021

Here are several stocks that reported strong dividend increases in the month of October, 2021;

1. AbbVie (ABBV) – 8.5% dividend increase

2. Visa (V) – 17.2% dividend increase

3. AEP (AEP) – 5.4% dividend increase

4. VF Corp (VFC) – 2% dividend increase

5. Kontoor Brands (KTB) – 15% dividend increase

6. Exxon Mobil (XOM) – 1.1% dividend increase, a Dividend Aristocrat

6. Huntington Bank (HBAN) – 3.3% dividend increase

Expected Dividend Increases in November 2021

For November we will focus on just five stocks that we expect to seen dividend increases, starting with Hormel (HRL).

Hormel (HRL) is Dividend King and has increased its dividend for 55 consecutive years. The company is a low yield, high dividend growth rate stock.

Last year’s dividend increase – 5.4%

Five-year average DGR – 11.13%

Expected timing of Dividend Increase Announcement – End of the month

Full analysis of Hormel from SureDividend.com

Full list of Dividend Kings

Nike (NKE) This famous shoe maker has increased its dividend for 19 consecutive years, which puts it on pace to become an S&P 500 dividend aristocrat. Nike has been paying out quarterly cash dividends to its shareholders since 1985. You can expect another double-digit percent increase this year, just like last year. Over the past three years, Nike's dividend has increased by an average of 15.8% per year.

Last year’s dividend increase – 12.2%

Five-year average DGR – 6.94%

Expected timing of Dividend Increase Announcement – End of the month

Analysis of Nike from Investopedia

McCormick & Co (MKC) Almost every thanksgiving dinner this year will feature spices from McCormick, and the CEO has stated the company is dealing with strong demand for products, as has been the case for years.

Last year’s dividend increase – 9.7%

Five-year average DGR – 9.60%

Expected timing of Dividend Increase

Announcement – Middle of the month

Analysis of McCormick from Investing.com

Lancaster Colony (LANC) is a much smaller name, but is still a Dividend King with dividend increases every year for almost 60 consecutive years making it a Dividend King.

Last year’s dividend increase – 7.2%

Five-year average DGR – 8.45%

Expected timing of Dividend Increase Announcement – Middle of the month

Analysis of Lancaster Colony from Schaeffersresearch.com

Summary

The way to achieve wealth is to increase the streams of passive income coming to you each month. That is why investing in quality stocks with a strong history of increasing their dividend payouts to you the investor is a really simple way to invest for the generational wealth.

With dividend growth stocks, your income grows….without you lifting a finger.

Floyd's bio: Floyd Saunders has more than 35 years of experience in the financial services industry. Floyd’s diverse background includes experience in retail banking, investment banking, insurance, investments, annuities, financial planning, and tax preparation. He has authored the following books: Figuring Out Wall Street, Family Financial Freedom and Five Paths To Wealth.

He has been an adjunct faculty member for Baker University, St. Mary’s College, Moraga, California, and Community Colleges in California, teaching courses in personal money management, managerial finance, money and banking, and principles of banking.

He has worked for Bank of America, JP Morgan and JPMorgan Chase, TransAmerica, Wells Fargo, Citibank, WoltersKluwer/CCH, H.R. Block and as a consultant in the financial services industry. He has prior experience as a registered representative and has published several articles on personal financial planning, investing and personal money management.