Expected Dividend Increases in September 2017

It is time for the most exciting dividend month of the quarter!  There is nothing more exciting than seeing the calendar turn and realizing that it is the month that most companies pay their dividend.  This is where you really see the fruits of your investing labor and the power of dividend investing flex its muscle.  For those of you that are new to our website, each month we create a list of some (not all) companies that are expected to increase their dividend in the coming month.   Dividend increases are the name of the game and what we are constantly monitoring on our website; we get pretty darn excited each time a company announces an increase because we know that each successive dividend re-investment results in additional shares, which leads to additional dividend income.  The impact may be small on an individual level, but man do these increases add up in the long run.   Now it is time to dive into the details and see which companies are expected to announce dividend increases in September.

Actual Dividend Increases in August 2017

I mentioned this was a monthly series, right?  Well, before we look ahead to the increase that are expected to occur in September, we wanted to review the increases that were discussed in our August edition.  We projected increases for four companies, let’s see if they delivered:

  • Dover Corp. (DOV) –  DOV increased their quarterly dividend to $.47/share from $.44/share, a 6.8% increase. This was spot on with the company’s five-year average dividend increase of 6.9% entering the month.  You have to love the consistency!
  • lIllinois Tool Works (ITW) – ITW posted the largest increase of the group, increasing their quarterly dividend to $.78/share from $.65/share.  Just a meager 20% dividend increase!  ITW continues to deliver as a low dividend yield, high dividend growth rate company.
  • Nordson Corp (NDSN) –  NDSN increased their quarterly dividend to $.30/shares from $.27/share. This was a bit of a surprise, given the fact that management had posted a 16.7% five-year average dividend growth rate entering the month.
  • Kellogg Company (K) – K increased their quarterly dividend to $.54/share from $.52/share. Much like DOV, this increase was very much in line with management’s five-year average dividend growth rate entering the month.

In August, there were some fireworks (ITW), underwhelming announcements (NDSN), and some steady-eddy dividend increases (DOV and K).   Part of the fun of dividend investing is that you never know what exactly you are going to get on a year to year basis because the business landscape is constantly changing.  Congrats to all that received a boost in their income this month from these four companies!

Expected Dividend Increases in September 2017

Now onto the fun part.  Below is our listing of companies that are expected to announce a dividend increase shortly.  This is not an all-inclusive list, as I’m sure this list could go on for pages.  If we left a company that you own off the list, please share the company and dividend increase history in the comments section.

  • McDonalds (MCD) – We are coming out of the games firing with one of our favorite dividend stocks and a nice Dividend Aristocrat.  The company has a streak of increasing their dividend for 40 consecutive years!  Man, it is one of our foundation dividend stocks for a reason folks.  MCD’s five-year average dividend growth rate is 6.5%. so we are hoping for an increase that is above their recent average. The company has been on a TEAR in 2017 (up ~30% YTD), so hopefully the dividend increase follows suit!
  • Lockheed-Martin Corp (LMT) – Another one of Lanny’s favorite holdings. I’d call it a legacy holding in his portfolio because it is one of his longest tenured investments.  LMT’s five-year average dividend growth rate is 13.69%, which is great for a company with their yield.  Let’s see if they have another double-digit dividend increase up their sleeve.
  • Microsoft – (MSFT) – It is rare for a tech company to make it on the list, but that will continue to change as companies like MFST, Apple, and Cisco continue to announce strong dividend increases.   MSFT’s 8.3% dividend increase in September 2016 was below their five-year average dividend growth rate of 14.38%.  I’m very interest to see if management continues with another mid to high single digit increase or if they revert closer to their average dividend increase.
  • Philip Morris International (PM) – PM is to me what LMT is to Lanny. PM was one of my original dividend stock positions and it holds a special place in my heart. PM’s dividend increase of 2% in 2016 was underwhelming.  Interestingly though, Altria Group just announced an 8% dividend increase in August.  So hopefully this is a great sign for us PM shareholders and they will follow suit!

Summary

Once again, another list of four very strong dividend paying companies.  We own all but one of the companies on the list between the two of us. Preparing this listing each month always serves as great motivation for me and reminds me why I am so excited and passionate about dividend growth investing!  Hopefully these four companies can deliver a strong dividend increase for all of us so we can bring ourselves that much closer to financial freedom!  Just remember folks, every dollar counts in our journey towards early retirement.  Meaning that every dividend increase and every extra dollar received each month make a huge difference in the grand scheme of things.

Do you own any of the companies on this listing?  Are you expecting an increase from a company that is not on this listing?  If so, please let us know the name of the company and their expected increase?  Do you think MSFT will bounce back from a lower dividend increase in 2016 when compared to their historical average?

-Bert

DISCLOSURE: I DO NOT RECOMMEND ANY DECISION TO THE READER or ANY USER, PLEASE CONSULT YOUR OWN RESEARCH. THIS IS ACTUAL DATA, ANALYSIS, HOWEVER I BASE NO INVESTOR RECOMMENDATION.  THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING.

17 thoughts on “Expected Dividend Increases in September 2017

  1. I don’t have LMT, but do have their competitor Northrop (NOC). They pay a $1.00 quarterly dividend which has gone up from 90 cents over the past year. I’ve had them for years and have benefited from a unrealized gain via stock price increase. Hopefully that can translate into higher dividends in the future!

    • That is one nice growth rate for NOC and it would be sick if they could keep that up this year. They have had three consecutive annual $.10/share increases in their quarterly dividend, which is interesting that the dollar amount is that consistent for a company with a higher growth rate. Let’s see what they deliver you in 2018 when they announce their next increase!

      Bert

  2. Bottom line, it’s always nice seeing a dividend increase coming your way, even if it’s a token amount sometimes. I’m curious to see what MCD will give us going forward. MCD has been on a tear this year and it just reminds me of all the negative headlines that were touted about two years ago. MCD is old, not in the millennial vocabulary, go to CMG instead, etc. etc. Reminds me of HRL or GIS today. Thanks for sharing.

    • DivHut,

      You are right. I always love seeing the dollar amount increase regardless of the size. Sometimes do I want more of an increase…of course! Who wouldn’t? But I am always glad to see my income stream grow. Interesting analogy. I remember MCD a few years ago and you would have thought they were going out of business based on the negative publicity they were receiving. But they have definitely turned it around and are now hitting their stride. Just goes to show that these Aristocrats have seen it all over the years. They have survived positive/negative economic cycles and experienced great/poor management teams. Through it all, they still continued to find a way to grow their dividend and expand their business reach. Man, that is why I love dividend investing!

      Thanks for the comment.

      Bert

  3. Hi Bert, thanks for the post. Always nice to see companies increase their dividend. I personally hold MSFT and LMT of the ones you mentioned, so curious to see what they will do with their dividend this month. Expecting high single digit increases.

  4. Is it September already?!?! My only increaser this September will be Unilever (UL) which has been on fire lately, but I’m expecting nice consistent payouts from five other stocks, plus the index funds hiding out in my retirement accounts. Septembers are great!

  5. Kraft Heinz (KHC) going from 0.60 to 0.625
    Target (TGT) going from 0.60 to 0.62
    JM Smucker (SJM) is going from 0.75 to 0.78
    Hershey (HSY) going from 0.618 to 0.656
    Wells Fargo (WFC) going from 0.38 to 0.39
    Stanley Black & Decker (SWK) going from 0.58 to 0.63
    Bank of America (BAC) going from 0.075 to 0.12

    I know you weren’t going for an exhaustive list but some people here might own these names or have them on their radar.
    Here’s to a great September!

    • Dividend Journal – Nice catch with KHC. I missed them in my summary and should have added them to my list of companies that increased their dividend in August. I focused on only companies that were included in my August article, and I inadvertently left them off the list. Should have had them though considering I own them! The other increases are great as well and I believe they were all covered in the June/July/August version of the article. Keep an eye out on a month to month basis and hopefully you will see more companies that you own on the listing.

      Take care and thanks for the comment!

      Bert

  6. Hi Bert
    That’s really great organic dividend growth you can expect from strong companies. I have some businesses with a comparable strong track record in terms of dividend hikes such as Coca Cola, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Nestlé, Novartis and Roche. Their dividend growth rate is clearly slowing but that’s nothing to lament about in my view, so long I can be confident that payments go up each year, I am fine.
    That’s one aspect I just love with Dividend Growth Investing, that we can project our income pretty accurately. We can all see, how big that rolling snowball will be in a couple of years. Just huge and that’s extremely motivating.
    Keep up your great work!
    Cheers

  7. I’m expecting another 2 cent raise from PM, which is really all that would be prudent given their current payout ratio and debt level. And I’m guessing at a 4 cent raise from MSFT, though that one is a lot less predictable. Anybody who thinks dividend growth investors are sacrificing capital gains should look at the YTD charts of those two stocks.

    • Brian,

      that sounds about right for PM. Hopefully it will be higher, but my expectations aren’t too high here. I’m excited to see if your Microsoft prediction comes true. I’ll wager a $.05/share increase. Let’s see who is closer.

      Bert

  8. Just own ITW from the list, but wow, what an increase it was! I had MAIN raise their dividend in August as well. Looking forward to September… I’m only expecting a raise from WPC, and only 1/2 cent at that, as they’ve been raising on a quarterly basis recently. I enjoy the dividend raise roundup, Bert… keep them coming!

    • That was one heck of an increase by ITW, that’s for sure. I would love the quarterly increase by WPC so it spreads the increase out and you can receive the benefit each quarter versus once per year. Thanks for the comment!

      Bert

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *