McDonald’s Corporation (MCD), Wells Fargo & Co (WFC), Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM): Three High Quality Leaders With Strong Dividend Growth Prospects

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McDonald’s

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) is the unquestionable leader in the global fast food industry; the company has more than 34,600 stores in 120 countries, and it has placed its restaurants in many of the most desirable locations in major world cities. This geographical advantage represents an asset that would be almost impossible to replicate by the competition.

No other brand in the industry enjoys the same recognition as McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD), and the company´s massive scale allows it to invest more than any of its peers in marketing and advertising. Besides, its huge size means more bargaining power when it comes to negotiating with suppliers, many of whom owe their existence to McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD), and this allows the company to obtain food and other raw materials at relatively low and stable prices.

The company is part of the Dividend Champions, a select group of companies that have been able to increase dividends over the last 25 consecutive years. The firm has raised its payments each and every year since paying its first dividend in 1976, so it has accumulated 37 consecutive dividend increases, and counting. McDonald´s is currently paying a tasty dividend yield of 3.1%.

Industry leaders with dominant market positions may not be the companies with the most explosive growth potential around, but in exchange for that they offer reliability and resilience trough all kinds of scenarios. Besides, rock-solid fundamentals allow for growing dividend payments year-after-year, and this has proven to be a crucial factor when it comes to generating superior returns for shareholders. After all, there is a reason why people say that slow and steady wins the race.

Andrés Cardenal has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) and Wells Fargo. The Motley Fool owns shares of McDonald’s and Wells Fargo. Andrés is a member of The Motley Fool Blog Network — entries represent the personal opinion of the blogger and are not formally edited.

The article Three High Quality Leaders With Strong Dividend Growth Prospects originally appeared on Fool.com is written by Andrés Cardenal.

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