Dividend Aristocrats for Week Ending February 14, 2014: Sigma-Aldrich Increases Dividend for 38th Year

Four Aristocrats announced quarterly dividends this week, including one that announced an increase from the prior quarter.

Life sciences company Sigma-Aldrich Corporation (SIAL) announced a 7% increase in their quarterly dividend, from 21.5 cents to 23 cents.  This is Sigma-Aldrich’s 38 consecutive year of dividend increases.  The new payout will be paid on March 14th to shareholders of record on February 28th.  At its current price, the higher payout increases Sigma-Aldrich’s yield to 0.95%.

Dover Corporation, Medtronic and The Clorox Company were the three Aristocrats that announced regular quarterly payouts this week.

Global manufacturer Dover Corporation (DOV) declared a regular dividend of 37.5 cents, payable on March 31st to shareholders of record on March 14th.  Dover last increased their dividend in September 2013 and the next dividend increase is expected to occur in September 2014.  Dover’s current yield is 1.74%.

Medtronic, Inc. (MDT), manufacturer of medical equipment, announced a dividend of 28 cents per share.  The dividend is payable on April 25th to shareholders of record on April 4th.  As part of the dividend announcement, the company also announced that they are committed to returning 50% of its free cash flow to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases.  Medtronic’s next dividend increase is expected to be announced in June and should be paid in July.  Medtronic’s current yield is 1.97%.

Consumer goods company The Clorox Company (CLX) declared a quarterly dividend of 71 cents to be paid on May 9th to shareholders of record on April 23rd.  The stock’s current yield is 3.22%.  Clorox’s next dividend increase should be announced in May and will likely be paid out in August.

PepsiCo (PEP) followed up on their dividend announcement last week by announcing their 42nd consecutive annual increase.  PepsiCo announced their financial results for the quarter this week and simultaneously announced that they would increase their per share dividend to 65.5 cents, starting with the June 2014 payout.  This is Pepsi’s 42nd consecutive year of dividend increases and results in a new annual yield at current prices of 3.36%.

3 thoughts on “Dividend Aristocrats for Week Ending February 14, 2014: Sigma-Aldrich Increases Dividend for 38th Year”

  1. BigYield

    Which of the “Aristocrats” are your favorites? Do you personally own many of these great companies?

    1. Jason Post author

      Thanks for visiting, BigYield! I currently own Exxon-Mobil and am actively looking to invest with a few other Aristocrats. As for which are my favorites, I haven’t done the detailed research on all 54 companies, but I am particularly impressed with Cardinal Health, which I just summarized. While its yield is a bit low (below 2%), the compounded dividend growth rate is very encouraging. The fact that it has positive demographics in its favor (a health care company serving an aging population) also helps. However, I’m still going through the companies so I’ll probably add a few more to my list of “favorites”.

      Thanks for the comment. Do you have any particular favorites?

  2. Pingback: Dividend Aristocrat Week In Review: Six Aristocrats Grow Their Dividend Payouts. | Dividend Aristocrat Stocks

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