Tough Month – My Goodness

By Brian Nelson, CFA The market rallied hard this month and seemed to leave a lot of the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio ideas behind. I’m not going to sugarcoat the results: The Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio disappointed this month, and for that I’m sorry.  A lot of it may be “explainable” in light of what happened on Election Day 2016, however. I think a lot of investors have shifted capital from the stronger dividend payers to the more-speculative ones in hopes that a new, pro-business Trump administration will be their saving grace. We hope so, but Trump cannot be President forever, and dividend growth investors should consider a long-term perspective, in my opinion, especially when it comes to compounding payouts … Read more

Podcast: REITs, Interest Rates and Beyond!

The Valuentum analyst team talks REITs and the reasons why REIT investors should pay close attention to changes in Treasury rates. Various secular themes across the data center, healthcare, office, and mall REITs are discussed, and an explanation for the sector’s systematically poor raw, unadjusted Dividend Cushion ratios is covered. ~8 mins. Tickerized for various ETFs and the holdings in the VNQ. Brian Nelson, CFA: In September, REITs were officially broken out from the financial sector to their own sector of the S&P 500 — some 30 or so stocks with $600 billion in market capitalization, or about 3% of the S&P 500. Could this change have marked a peak in performance for equity and mortgage REIT stocks? Are investors … Read more

EVERYTHING DIVIDENDS + 3 TOP IDEAS

The Valuentum analyst team explains the difference between the adjusted Dividend Cushion ratio and its unadjusted counterpart. The success of the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio is covered, and Valuentum’s top 3 dividend growth ideas are unveiled. ~13 minutes. If you are unable to view the video below, please select the link here or view the transcript below. Kris Rosemann: Hello and welcome to the Valuentum Securities podcast. My name is Kris Rosemann and with me today is Chris Araos and Brian Nelson, the president of equity research and ETF analysis here at Valuentum, and today we’re going to be discussing the Dividend Cushion ratio, the Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio, and some of our favorite dividend ideas on the market today. So … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending September 30

Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending September 30. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week American Express (AXP): now $0.32 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.29. Artesian Resources Corporation (ARTNA): now $0.2283 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.2249. AZZ (AZZ): now $0.17 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.15. BancFirst (BANF): now $0.38 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.36. Banner (BANR): now $0.23 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.21. Calavo Growers (CVGW): now $0.90 per share annual dividend, was $0.80. Clacor (CLC): … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending September 9

Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending September 9. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Ameris Bancorp (ABCB): now $0.10 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.05. Brady (BRC): now $0.205 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.2025. Citizens Financial Services (CZFS): now $0.42 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.415. Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI): now $0.60 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.56. Israel Chemicals (ICL): now $0.04702 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.02745. Logitech (LOGI): now CHF 0.56 per share annual dividend, … Read more

Realty Income Does It Again!

Image Source: Realty Income (used with permission) By Kris Rosemann Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio holding Realty Income (O), or ‘The Monthly Dividend Company,’ increased its monthly payout for the 75th consecutive quarter in June 2016 during yet another solid quarter of operating performance. The cumulative monthly payouts in the June quarter of 2016 reflect 4.9% growth over the cumulative payouts in the comparable period of 2015. Backing such an impressive dividend track record has been Realty Income’s steady portfolio of long-term lease agreements. Occupancy rates in its portfolio continue to hover around 98%–the metric ended the quarter at exactly 98%–helping revenue advance nearly 7% in the second quarter of 2016 from the year-ago period, thanks in part to same-store rents increasing … Read more

Keep Calm and Carry On?

Image Source: War History Online, June 22 Brexit may or may not be a big problem. Time will tell. But what matters and eventually becomes its own catalyst, however, is valuation. The forward price-to-earnings multiple on S&P 500 companies (SPY) is currently ~16.5 times, above its 5-year (14.6) and 10-year averages (14.3). This is the real story. Assuming a reversion to the 10-year average multiple, for example, the S&P 500 can be considered “fairly valued” at $1,811, a drop of another 10% from ~2,000 levels. You don’t need us to tell you that the markets have practically gone straight up the past seven years from the March 2009 panic bottom through today, with the S&P 500 effectively tripling since that … Read more

Brexit: Secession Bells Are Ringing!

First Baptist Church in Columbia, S.C., where the first secession convention in the United States opened on Dec. 17, 1860. Source: Library of Congress, Washington, DC. Photo. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Web. 24 Jun. 2016. Global markets are plunging, and the implosion may still be in the early innings. Market valuations remain stretched among stagnant global economic growth, and “Brexit” may be the catalyst for a correction. In the paraphrased words of the well-known The Day of the Jackal author, Frederick Forsyth: the peasants have spoken. On June 23, the UK (EWU) held a referendum, in which anyone of voting age could take part, to decide whether the country should leave the European Union. The turnout was incredible at nearly 72%, and … Read more

Dividend Increases/Decreases for the Week Ending June 17

Below we provide a list of firms that raised/lowered their dividends during the week ending June 17. The dividend reports of covered firms on this list will be updated shortly with the new information. To access our dividend reports use the ‘Symbol’ search box in our website header. Firms Raising Their Dividends This Week Ashford Hospitality Prime (AHP): now $0.12 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.10. Farmers & Merchants Bancorp (FMAO): now $0.23 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.22. Fidelity Nasdaq Composite Index Tracking ETF (ONEQ): now $0.54 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.49. Investar (ISTR): now $0.01 per share quarterly dividend, was $0.009. Mesa Royalty Trust (MTR): now $0.0358 per share monthly dividend, was $0.0221. Realty Income (O): now … Read more

The Monthly Dividend Company Keeps Chugging Along

Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio holding Realty Income (O) declared its 550th consecutive monthly dividend April 11. The 549th consecutive dividend was declared in March, and that dividend brought with it the 74th consecutive increase in the payout on a quarterly basis. Cumulative first quarter dividends in 2016 have advanced 4.8% over first quarter dividends in 2015. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of Realty Income’s dividend track record is the performance the company has put up to support it, and the first quarter of 2016, released April 26, was certainly no exception for the Monthly Dividend Company. The firm reported revenue growth of more than 8% in the quarter on a year-over-year basis, driven by same-site rent growth well above 1% … Read more