Sept. 2, 2011, 2:00 p.m. EDT
Dividend investors: Fatter payday on way
Cash back could hit $241 billion, up 18% from 2010
By Matt Andrejczak, MarketWatch
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Great news, dividend investors: You’re in for a fatter payday this year — and probably in 2012 as well.
America’s 500 largest publicly traded companies, bolstered by record profits and flush with cash, are increasing their dividends at the fastest pace in seven years.
This should comfort faithful dividend investors who got burned in 2009 when the global economy went into a state of shock, forcing General Electric, Citigroup and other corporate titans to slash their dividends.
On the flip side, it shows that big companies are still reluctant to hire anyone despite the money piling up on their balance sheets following major the cost cuts they embarked upon to cope with the recession. The U.S. economy didn’t add any jobs in August, leaving the unemployment rate stuck at 9.1%.
In 2011, through Aug. 31, fully 243 — nearly half of the companies in the S&P 500 — have either increased or initiated a dividend payment, up from 175 during the first eight months of 2010 and a paltry 102 during the same eight months of 2009, S&P data shows.
Higher dividend are appearing across the board. Dow 30 component Verizon Communications said Thursday that it would raise its dividend for a fifth straight year, pushing its annual payout up 2.6% to $2 a share.
Full story: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dividend-investors-fatter-payday-on-way-2011-09-02
Gold is $1,581/oz today. When it hits $2,000, it will be up 26.5%. Let's see how long that takes. - De 3/11/2013 - ANSWER: 7 Years, 5 Months
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