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Angus Mordant/ Bloomberg
Things go better with Coke, as the company’s long-ago jingle proclaimed. Things are also going better for the beverage company’s stockholders, thanks to the news that its dividend will be increased.
Coca-Cola (ticker: KO) said this week it is raising its annual dividend to $1.76 a share from $1.68, an increase of nearly 5%. That equates to 44 cents on a quarterly basis, up from 42 cents.
This marks the 60th consecutive annual dividend increase for the company, which is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats index. Those companies have paid out a higher dividend for at least 25 straight years.
Coca-Cola stock, which yields 2.8%, has a one-year return of about 28% as of the market’s close on Feb. 17, dividends included, ahead of the
S&P 500
‘s 13% result.
Elsewhere,
Walmart,
Humana, and
CSX were among the various U.S. companies that declared dividend increases this week.
Walmart (WMT) said it plans to pay an annual dividend of $2.24 a share, up 4 cents, or nearly 2% from $2.20. On a quarterly basis, the company plans to pay 56 cents a share, compared with 55 cents previously.
The retailing behemoth’s stock has a one-year return of about minus 4%, and it yields 1.6%. This marks the 49th straight year of dividend increases for the company, which is also a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats index.
Managed-care company Humana (HUM) said it plans to boost its quarterly disbursement to 78.75 cents from 70 cents, an increase of 12.5%. The stock, which yields 0.7%, has a one-year return of about 13%.
Freight transportation company CSX (CSX) said it would hike its quarterly dividend to 10 cents a share from 9.33 cents. That’s a 7% increase. The stock, which yields 1.1%, has a one-year return of about 18%.
Sherwin-Williams (SHW) declared a quarterly dividend of 60 cents a share, a 9% boost from 55 cents. The company makes various paints and coatings. The stock, which yields 0.9%, has a one-year return of about 12%.
Devon Energy (DVN) announced a fourth-quarter dividend of $1.00. That consists of a variable and fixed payout. The fixed dividend is 16 cents a share; the variable dividend is 84 cents a share.
The stock, which yields 3.6%, has a one-year return of about 170%.
Another energy company,
Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD), declared a base-variable dividend as well. Pioneer said it would pay a first-quarter dividend totaling $3.78 a share, of which $3 will be variable and 78 cents will be the base portion.
The stock, which yields 4.6%, has a one-year return of about 75%.
Several technology companies announced dividend increases as well.
Cisco Systems (CSCO) declared a quarterly disbursement of 38 cents a share, up by a penny, or nearly 3%. The stock, which yields 2.7%, has a one-year return of about 24%
Analog Devices (ADI) said it would up its quarterly payout to 76 cents a share from 69 cents for an increase of 10%. The semiconductor company’s stock, which has returned about 2% over the past 12 months, yields 1.9%.
Utility and alternative energy power
NextEra Energy (NEE) plans to boost its quarterly disbursement by 4 cents a share to 42.5 cents, an increase of a little more than 10%. The stock, which yields 2%, has a one-year return of about minus 5%.
In other news,
PPL (PPL), a utility company based in Allentown, Penn., said it planned to pay a quarterly dividend of 20 cents a share, down from 41.5 cents a share previously. The move is tied in part to the company’s sale of its U.K. utility business.
At the same time, PPL is acquiring Narragansett Electric, based in Rhode Island, a deal that is awaiting completion of a regulatory review.
PPL’s chief financial officer, Joseph Bergstein, told analysts on Friday that the company plans to “reflect any increase in the dividend due to the inclusion of Narragansett in our forecast when we provide a comprehensive financial update at the investor day,” according to a transcript of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call.
Write to Lawrence C. Strauss at [email protected]