In addition, one of the best ways to infer how a company’s management team perceives its future outlook is by analyzing two key factors: how long a company has paid dividends to investors and the level of a company’s dividend growth rate.
In that vein, the following blue chip stocks all hold impressive dividend track records and they all recently announced yet another dividend increase.
First up, two of the world’s integrated energy majors
Oil juggernaut Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) very recently provided investors with a 10.5% dividend increase, bringing its payout to nearly 3% at recent prices.
Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), the $400 billion mega-cap stock, has a tremendous dividend track record. The company has rewarded its investors for more than a century with generous dividends, and has increased its distribution for 31 consecutive years. What’s more, Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has a remarkably consistent dividend growth pattern, increasing its payout by an average annual rate of 6% over the past 30 years.
Fellow energy competitor Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) recently offered its investors a dividend bump ahead of its first-quarter earnings results. The company increased its quarterly payout to $1.00 per share, up from the previous level of $0.90 per share. This represents a very solid 11% dividend increase, exactly identical to the 11% dividend increase last year. Impressively, the company has paid uninterrupted dividends for the last century, and the recent raise represents the 26th consecutive year of dividend growth.
Clean up with this consumer products company
Like Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), consumer staples giant The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) has a tremendous history of rewarding shareholders.
In fiscal 2012 The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) returned $10 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. Very recently, the company increased its dividend by 7% year-over-year. The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) represents the gold standard of dividend-paying stocks: this year marks the 123rd in a row of consecutive dividend payments, since the company’s incorporation in 1890. Furthermore, The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) has increased its dividend for 57 years in a row.
The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) had a rough day after releasing its quarterly earnings, falling more than 5%. However, even with the down day, P&G is still up more than 15% over the past 52 weeks, and that doesn’t include the company’s dividends.
The Foolish conclusion
Due to historically low interest rates brought on by the Federal Reserve’s stance on monetary policy, dividend yields such as these, in excess of the 2% yield available on the S&P 500 Index, become even more valuable.
Even better, each of these companies provides investors dividend growth that outpaces inflation, a distinct advantage dividend stocks hold over fixed income. Investors concerned that their certificates of deposit and other low-yielding securities will lose purchasing power over time can take comfort in the fact that each of these stocks offers dividend growth well above inflation.
Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), and The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) are all large-cap stocks with market values in excess of $200 billion. Each of these stocks is a member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and offers investors the tantalizing combination of reliable, annual dividend increases backed up by stable financial performance. If you’re looking for reliable income, consider adding these stocks to your watch list.
The article Another Year, and Another Dividend Increase for These Dividend Stalwarts originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Robert Ciura.
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