3 Dividend-Growth Stocks That Are Paying Investors Up to 5.1%
Finding a good dividend stock can be challenging, because investors must consider multiple factors. An important one is dividend growth. The three companies listed below have all raised their dividends in recent years, and now could be a great time to consider buying them.
Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) has become one of the better dividend stocks on the NASDAQ. Solid financials and ample cash on hand have ensured that dividend investors don't have to worry about the safety of the payouts. As a bonus, the company has also been very aggressive when it has come to buying back shares, letting investors benefit from a rising share price as well. In five years, Apple's stock has climbed by more than 140%.
That makes its dividend yield of 1.1% look a little modest, but the company has been making strides in improving it. Quarterly payments of $0.77 have risen by 64% from the $0.47 of five years ago. That averages out to a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.4% per year. At that rate, it would take about seven years for its payouts to double. And given that Apple has $49 billion of cash on its books and its payout ratio is just 25%, it's a very real possibility that dividend payments will continue to grow at a rapid pace.
Source Fool.com
