Companies Which Have Increased their Dividends

Reynolds American (RAI)
Reynolds American is the maker of Camel cigarettes. Are cigarettes bad for people? Yes, and if you are bothered by this, choose a different company. But from an investment standpoint, Reynolds packs a dividend punch.

In June of 2012, Reynolds raised their dividend by 5%. According to the company, a dividend increase reflects the "confidence in ... the strategies that Reynolds and its operating companies have in place".

Reynolds sells a product that is in high demand, and has pricing power. It has raised its dividend six times since 2004, more than doubling the dividend. And Reynolds is one of the rare companies which can increase prices without losing customers. Reynold's dividend is about 5%. Click here to see RAI's dividend history. As of October 2016, RAI is considering a takeover offier from British American Tobacco, which like RAI, offers an attractive dividend.

AT&T (T)
This is the company which once had a monopoly on the telephone business.

In January of 2012, AT&T announced an increase to their dividend, and the company has been buying back a large chunk of its own shares. According to the company "the dividend increase ... reflects the Board's confidence in our ability to generate strong cash flows".

Copper wire is being harnessed in ways never imagined, and AT&T adapted and entered the wireless market. Further, AT&T has a variety of add-on services that could generate more revenue for what used to be called the "phone company". AT&T pays a dividend of about 5%. Click here to see AT&T's dividend history



Dividends in the News
Below you'll find some some recent news related to dividend paying companies. While I don't endorse the content of these articles, or any of the companes listed above, they're worth a read, as you'll see certain company names consistently identified as solid dividend paying stocks.

Click here to read about recent dividend increases.