U.S. dividend stocks shoveling cash to shareholders

The trickle of dividend-payers is continuing in December. All told, 17 stocks with a market cap of over $1-billion announced dividend increases in the last week. That's the same number of stocks as we saw in the previous week -- a good sign that dividend hikes aren't completely dropping off.

Historically, dividend stocks have been a good bet. Over the last 36 years, dividend stocks have outperformed the rest of the S&P 500 by 2.5 per cent annually, and they outperformed nonpayers by nearly 8 per cent every year, all while paying out cash to their shareholders, according to data compiled by Ned Davis Research. The numbers are even more compelling when looking at companies that consistently increase their payouts.

Source: Globe and Mail

Related Articles:
- American Safari: Stalking Three Great Dividend Stocks
- Five Stocks For Any Economic Situation
- Dividend Investing vs. S&P Index Fund
- Five Dividend Stocks To Watch
- Does This Market Have A Bottom?