March 9, 2024

Dividend Increases: Week 10

 


 

In this article, I will go through the weekly dividend increases and cuts in popular and well-known stocks. (Member of The Dividend Champions or Canadian All-Star list)



Recently, 6 companies announced dividend increases. Note that no dividend cuts or suspensions were announced during this period.



The table below summarises the dividend change announcements. The table shows the current dividend, the new dividend and the percentage increase (%). Dividends are shown on an annual basis and in US dollars unless otherwise stated. Yield is the new dividend yield of the most recent price, and Years is the years of consecutive dividend increases.







March 5, 2024

7 Stalwart Stocks to Buy and Hold Through Any Storm

 


 

Fundamentally, the bullish case for acquiring stalwart stocks is a simple one. It’s effectively Wall Street’s version of befriending the biggest, meanest schoolyard bully.


We’ve all been in this situation before. As kids, we typically grow at a similar rate to our classmates. However, some kids are built differently, like they’re destined to play middle linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys. You don’t mess with these giants. In turn, by being their friend, people tend to not mess with you either.


Now, it doesn’t mean you can go around with impunity and mess with other kids. But befriending the bully gives you a certain level of confidence that whatever happens at school, you’ve got someone that can take care of business.


It’s the same thing on Wall Street. These ideas probably won’t make you rich. But they should help you avoid being poor. On that note, below are intriguing stalwart stocks to buy and hold through any storm.



Continue reading …


March 2, 2024

Notable Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades for Week of February 26, 2024

 


 

Upgrades:



Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Celanese (NYSE:CE) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has $170.00 price target on the basic materials company’s stock, up from their previous price target of $135.00.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Alembic Global Advisors cut shares of Celanese from an overweight rating to a neutral rating and set a $160.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Celanese from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Celanese from $167.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Bank of America lowered shares of Celanese from a neutral rating to an underperform rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $124.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 16th. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Celanese from $135.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $143.44. Read more …



Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Kroger (NYSE:KR) from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $50.00 price target on the stock, up from their prior price target of $42.00.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Kroger from $48.00 to $46.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 1st. Stephens lowered their price objective on shares of Kroger from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 1st. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an outperform rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Kroger from $54.00 to $53.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 1st. Finally, TheStreet raised shares of Kroger from a c+ rating to a b rating in a report on Thursday, November 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $53.00. Read more …



J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) was upgraded by research analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $135.00 target price on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective suggests a potential upside of 12.37% from the stock’s current price.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on SJM. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded J. M. Smucker from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $123.00 to $119.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 14th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $133.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 6th. Morgan Stanley restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $122.00 price objective on shares of J. M. Smucker in a report on Wednesday, December 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on J. M. Smucker from $125.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 6th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded J. M. Smucker from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, J. M. Smucker has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $137.57. Read more …

Dividend Increases: Week 9 (Part 2)

 


 

In this article, I will go through the weekly dividend increases and cuts in popular and well-known stocks. (Member of The Dividend Champions or Canadian All-Star list)



Recently, 25 companies announced dividend increases. Note that no dividend cuts or suspensions were announced during this period. This is the second part of the week’s notifications.



The table below summarises the dividend change announcements. The table shows the current dividend, the new dividend and the percentage increase (%). Dividends are shown on an annual basis and in US dollars unless otherwise stated. Yield is the new dividend yield of the most recent price, and Years is the years of consecutive dividend increases.







March 1, 2024

Dividend Increases: Week 9 (Part 1)

 


 

In this article, I will go through the weekly dividend increases and cuts in popular and well-known stocks. (Member of The Dividend Champions or Canadian All-Star list)



Recently, 25 companies announced dividend increases. Note that no dividend cuts or suspensions were announced during this period. This is the first part of the week’s notifications.



The table below summarises the dividend change announcements. The table shows the current dividend, the new dividend and the percentage increase (%). Dividends are shown on an annual basis and in US dollars unless otherwise stated. Yield is the new dividend yield of the most recent price, and Years is the years of consecutive dividend increases.







February 28, 2024

Best Dividend ETFs to Buy Now

 

Are you a set-it-and-forget-it income investor? These dividend ETFs provide a variety of long-term cash-generating strategies.

 




When you're investing for the long run, there's nothing like a sizable allocation to dividend-paying stocks to help you get some sleep at night. And if cold, hard cash is like a warm, fuzzy blanket, dividend ETFs (exchange-traded funds) are like a closet full of quilts.


Admittedly, it's hard to care about gradually building wealth with dividend payments when there are so many flashier things going on. Be real: How many CNBC and Bloomberg TV spots have you watched about the explosive gains of AI stocks? OK, now how many spots have you watched about slow trickles of cash?


That's fine. Because what dividend stocks lack in curb appeal, they make up for in substance. From Hartford Funds:


"Dividends have played a significant role in the returns investors have received during the past 50 years. Going back to 1960, 69% of the total return of the S&P 500 Index can be attributed to reinvested dividends and the power of compounding."


Clearly, you don't want to sleep on dividends … but what's the best way to stash them in your portfolio? You could try to pick and choose individual stocks that pay shareholders, but like with any single-stock investments, you're taking on a bit of risk – not just of the company faltering and shares heading lower, but that, sometime in the future, it cuts or even eliminates its dividend.


Or, you could spread out that risk across dozens, hundreds, even thousands of stocks via dividend ETFs.


So read on as we discuss seven of the best dividend ETFs for a diversified portfolio. To find the best ETFs to buy, we've narrowed our search down to seven funds with low costs and varying strategies. We've also selected ETFs that enjoy Morningstar Gold or Silver Medalist ratings – Morningstar's forward-looking ratings system that analyzes a fund's ability to outperform its category in the future.



Continue reading …