In This Article:
Dividend growth investing is a simple but effective strategy. It is widely misunderstood too.
As a Dividend Growth Investor, I look for companies with a long history of annual dividend increases.
A long streak of consecutive annual dividend increases is typically an indication of a business with strong competitive advantages, good growth prospects, high returns on invested capital, and strong and recurring cash flows. A long streak of annual dividend increases is typical for companies with wide moats, which have tended to grow earnings per share for decades. As a long-term dividend investor, my goal is to identify such a business early in the game, buy it at an attractive price, and ride the economic trend for as long as possible. In other words, I am after companies that can grow earnings and dividends over time. I buy and hold forever, or in my case, for as long as they do not cut dividends.
Before doing so of course, I always review the company, its fundamentals and check the qualitative aspect of the business as well. Once I initiate a position, I also monitor the company for any major developments. But as part of my risk management process, I keep portfolio weights in check, and I very rarely would sell an existing position. I may not add to it if it stops meeting my entry criteria, which is guaranteeing a low allocation, as I build positions slowly and over time.
Copyright: netsay / 123RF Stock Photo
Q2 2020 hedge fund letters, conferences and more
One of my favorite monitoring exercises is to check the list of dividend increases every week. That way, I get to see if my existing investments continue raising dividends, and if my thesis is still working. I also get to identify companies for future research through this exercise. In addition, I get to read the press releases and gauge managements sentiment towards the near-term prospects of the business.
My weekly review focuses on companies that have increased distributions for at least ten years in a row. During the past week, the four companies that raised dividends include:
Lowe's Companies Inc (NYSE:LOW)
Lowe's Companies, Inc. (LOW) operates as a home improvement retailer in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
The company increased its quarterly dividend by 9.10% to 60 cents/share. This marked the 58th year of consecutive annual dividend increases for this dividend king. During the past decade, Lowe's has managed to increase dividends at an annualized rate of 19.40%.
Between 2010 and 2020, Lowe’s managed to grow earnings from $1.21/share to $5.49/share. Lowe's is expected to generate $8.31/share in 2021.