16 Companies Increasing Dividends This Week

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It was another week of losses on Wall Street, and even the debut of Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), the biggest tech IPO ever, failed to get buyers excited. On the dividend front, we saw once-mighty retailer J.C. Penney (NYSE:JCP) move to suspend its payout as part of plan to cut costs and get the company back on track.

Yet it wasn’t all somber news for income seekers. This week we saw another batch of great companies moving to increase shareholder wealth. Here are 16 companies increasing dividends this week.

Property and casualty insurer ACE Ltd. (NYSE:ACE) moved to ensure shareholders’ wallets, increasing its quarterly payout 4.25% to 49 cents per share. The new dividend will be paid Aug. 21 to shareholders of record as of July 31. The new dividend yield, based on the May 16 closing price of $75.26 (the day the dividend was announced), is 2.60%.

H2O utility provider American Water Works (NYSE:AWK) turned up the spigot on its dividend by 8.7% to 25 cents per share. The new dividend is payable Sept. 3 to shareholders of record as of July 6. The new dividend yield, based on the May 11 closing price of $34.33, is 2.91%.

Specialized insurance provider Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) upped its premium to shareholders by 17% to 21 cents per share. The new dividend is payable June 12 to shareholders of record as of May 29. The new dividend yield, based on the May 11 closing price of $37.81, is 2.22%.

Chemical and specialty products maker Cabot (NYSE:CBT) boosted its dividend 11% to 20 cents per share. The new dividend formula will be paid in June 15 to shareholders of record as of June 1. The new dividend yield, based on the May 11 closing price of $41.87, is 1.91%.

Consumer products giant Clorox (NYSE:CLX) stocked shareholders’ shelves with a 6.7% increase in its quarterly payout to 64 cents per share. The new payout will be made on Aug. 10 to shareholders of record as of July 25. The new dividend yield, based on the May 15 closing price of $69.04, is 3.71%. The maker of multiple household brands has increased its dividend every year since 1977.

Oil refiner HollyFrontier (NYSE:HFC) refined its quarterly payout with 50% more fiscal octane. The new payout of 15 cents per share will be pumped out July 3 to shareholders of record as of June 12. The new dividend yield, based on the May 16 closing price of $29.57, is 2.03%. The company also declared a special dividend of 50 cents a share.

Bank-based financial services firm KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) upped its quarterly payout 66% to 5 cents per share. The new payout will be made on June 15 to shareholders of record as of May 29. The new dividend yield, based on the May 17 closing price of $7.40, is 2.70%. The company also increased the payout on its preferred shares.

Risk, insurance and consulting firm Marsh & McLennan (NYSE:MMC) consulted its financials and moved to increase its quarterly dividend by about 5% to 23 cents per share. The new payout will be made on Aug. 15 to shareholders of record as of July 11. The new dividend yield, based on the May 17 closing price of $31.96, is 2.88%.

Natural gas transmission and storage firm NiSource (NYSE:NI) turned up the heat on its quarterly payout by 4.3% to 24 cents per share. The new dividend is payable Aug. 20 to shareholders of record as of the close of business July 31. The new dividend yield, based on the May 15 closing price of $25.09, is 3.83%.

Defense contractor Northrop Grumman (NYSE:NOC) increased the firepower of its quarterly dividend, boosting its payout 10% to 55 cents per share. The new dividend will be paid on June 13 to shareholders of record as of May 28. The new dividend yield, based on the May 17 closing price of $58.5, is 3.76%.

Grocery chain operator Safeway (NYSE:SWY) packed shareholders’ portfolios with a 21% higher dividend to 17.5 cents per share. The new payout will be made on July 12 to shareholders of record as of June 21. The new dividend yield, based on the May 15 closing price of $18.78, is 3.73%.

Airline operator Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) showed shareholders a little “LUV” by booking a new 122% higher quarterly dividend to 1 cent per share. The increased dividend will be payable on June 20 to shareholders of record as of June 6. The new dividend yield, based on the May 16 closing price of $8.29, is 0.41%.

Iconic luxury goods seller Tiffany (NYSE:TIF) gave investors a little blue box, boosting its dividend 10% to 32 cents per share. The new payout will be made on July 10 to shareholders of record as of June 20. The new dividend yield, based on the May 17 closing price of $60.07, is 2.13%.

Railway products maker Westinghouse Air Brakes Technologies (NSYE:WAB) added to its dividend boxcar, upping its payout 66.6% to 5 cents per share. The new dividend will be payable Aug. 31 to shareholders of record as of Aug. 17. The new dividend yield, based on the May 16 closing price of $72, is 0.28%.

Energy infrastructure and pipeline operator Williams Cos. (NYSE:WMB) has raised its quarterly payout nearly 16% to 30 cents per share. The new dividend is payable June 25 to shareholders of record as of June 8. The new dividend yield, based on the May 17 closing price of $29.79, is 4.03%.

Electricity and natural gas company Xcel Energy (NYSE:XEL) increased the power on its quarterly payout by 3.8% to 27 cents per share. The new dividend is payable July 20 to shareholders of record as of June 21. The new dividend yield, based on the May 16 closing price of $27.45, is 3.93%.

At the time of publication, Jim Woods held no positions in any of the stocks mentioned in this article.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2012/05/16-companies-increasing-dividends-this-week/.

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