7 Stocks Boosting Dividends Last Week

Dividend stocks have made some big moves in the last week. As we entered December the stock market rallied broadly and high yield dividend stocks were caught in the updraft. But more importantly, as an unfavorable unemployment report hit Wall Street on Friday we saw investors return to dividend stock investments as a way to hedge their bets against lingering economic uncertainty. If you're looking to secure your retirement via investment in income producing dividend stocks, take note of some of the picks on this week's list. There are some high yield dividend stocks that are paying even more, some income players making special one-time dividends to end the year and a few companies with relatively small dividends but decent growth potential. Here's your list of 7 stocks boosting dividends in the last week: Deere Dividend Increase On December 2, tractor and machinery giant D eere & Co. (NYSE: DE ) increased its its quarterly dividend by 17%. The Deere dividend increase equates to 5 cents, from 30 to 35 cents per share, and is payable Feb. 1 to shareholders of record Dec. 31. Deere has a new dividend yield of 1.7%. The Deere dividend increase comes after a Nov. 24 earnings report that included a double-digit EPS surprise. Deere has a consistent track record of paying quarterly dividends, increasing its dividend every year since 2004 and paying out quarterly stipends since 1937. The last Deere dividend hike came in May when the company increased its quarterly payout by 7% from 28 cents to 30 cents. Deere has been running strong in 2010, with gains of about 44% year-to-date for DE stock, which is well over four-times the broader stock market. After setting a new 52 week high, shares rolled back in late November but Deere is making another move upwards again in recent days. Citizens Dividend Increase Philadelphia financial stock Citizens Holding Co. (NASDAQ: CIZN ) announced on Nov. 30 that it will boost its quarterly dividend a penny from 21 cents to 22 cents a share. Though that may not sound impressive, the new dividend yield is – a heft 4.8% that is much better than many of other financial stocks right now. The latest dividend is pay Dec. 31 to shareholders of record Dec. 15. Citizens Holding Company is a one-bank holding company and the parent company of The Citizens Bank. Shares have not done well in 2010, off about -17% on the year after a gut wrenching drop across the spring from which CIZN has not recovered. However, the flop may provide value investors a buying opportunity. Regal Dividend Increase I was very surprised in November to find a number of movie stocks raising dividends , and even more surprised to see them with such hefty dividend yields. But apparently theater operators and cinema stocks are good income plays. Who knew? Well if you're watching this segment of the entertainment industry, take note that on Dec. 1 Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC ) declared a special dividend of $1.40 per share. The company sweetened the post even more with an announcement it may soon increase its regular quarterly dividend as well, with a 17% hike from 18 cents to 21 cents per share. That would give the stock a new dividend yield of about 5% at current valuations, with the new higher dividend level kicking in during the first quarter of 2011. The extraordinary cash dividend of $1.40 per share – about 10% of the current Regal Entertainment stock price – is payable Dec. 30 to stockholders of record Dec. 20. Regal has had a ho-hum 2010, with share prices barely squeaking out a profit year-to-date and lagging the rest of Wall Street. However, the big special dividend from RGC coupled with the hopes of a plump yield in 2011 are good reasons to consider this pick as an income investment. Enbridge Dividend Increase On December 1, Canada energy stock Enbridge Inc. (NYSE: ENB ) announced a 15% increase to its quarterly dividend. The move increased the Enbridge dividend from 42.5 cents a share to 49 cents. Payable March 1 to shareholders of record Feb. 15, the new ENB dividend yield is now about 3.4% at current stock valuations. Enbridge has paid dividend since 1952 and the oil and natural gas distributor is a favorite among income investors. There's no surprise why – in the words of Enbridge CEO Patrick Daniel, “Enbridge’s current policy is to pay out between 60 and 70% of its adjusted earnings as dividends to its shareholders.” Not a bad chunk of change. Enbridge has more than doubled the performance of the broader stock market in 2010 so far, with gains of +22% YTD. The stock has had a particularly good run this fall, up about +14% since Sept. 1. Toro Dividend Increase Also last week, outdoor power-equipment manufacturer Toro Co. (NYSE: TTC ) announced a dividend increase last week. The 11% dividend increase boosts the payout 2 cents from 18 to 20 cents a share each quarter. That gives Toro Co. a new dividend yield of about 1.2% at current valuations. The dividend is payable Jan. 11 to shareholders as of Dec. 17. Also, Toro authorized a buyback of nearly 10% of outstanding TTC shares. The move comes after a blowout Toro earnings report last quarter that showed strong demand for landscaping and irrigation equipment, and a profit jump of 69% to easily top Wall Street forecasts. Toro Co. increased its earnings guidance after its last report as well. TTC stocks is up +50% year-to-date in 2010, including a gain of nearly +9% in the last month alone. Ecolab Dividend Increase Ecolab Inc. (NYSE: ECL ) is another stock with a modest dividend that raised its payout on December 2. The cleaning company’s quarterly dividend was boosted 13%, from 15.5 cents a share to 17.5 cents. This marks the 19th straight year of increases for Ecolab, which has been paying dividends since 1936. The new Ecolab dividend is payable Jan. 21 to shareholders of record Dec. 18, and givers ECL stock a new dividend yield of about 1.4%. Ecolab provides cleaning, sanitation and pest-control products and services. The company recently reported its third-quarter profit jumped 20% on revenue and margin improvements, as well as investments. Shares have slightly lagged the market in 2010, up about +7% compared with about 9% for the Dow Jones and S&P 500. The company set a new 52-week high in October but has since rolled back a bit. Eastman Dividend Increase Eastman Chemical Co . (NYSE: EMN ), a manufacturer of chemicals, synthetic fibers and plastics, announced a 7% increase to its quarterly dividend last week to mark its first dividend increase since 1996. The move from 44 cents to 47 cents per share gives EMN stock a new dividend yield of about 2.3%, and the dividend is payable Jan. 3 to shareholders of record December 13. The increase share will cost the small-cap company some $8.7 million a year, but Eastman appears to be secure enough to shoulder the costs of a bigger dividend. Shares are up about +36% so far in 2010 – about four-times better than the rest of Wall Street. Also, Eastman reported in October that its third-quarter profit climbed 68% to beat expectations. Jeff Reeves is editor of InvestorPlace.com. As of this writing, he did not own a position in any of the stocks named here. Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/JeffReevesIP .
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