My dream investment is a high-yield stock with a fast-growing
dividend. But such combinations are rare. This is because most companies that pay a fat dividend have matured out of their high-growth phase and compensate investors for slower growth by distributing more of their cash as dividends. If you look hard, however, you can still find a few rare gems that offer generous yields and rising dividends.
Consider, for example, if you had purchased the S&P 500 ETF (NYSE: SPY) at year-end 1998 and sold at year-end 2010. Your purchase price would have been $123.31, and your selling would have been $125.75 -- a gain of just 2%. Add dividends to the equation, however, and the picture becomes much rosier. During the holding period, you would have collected a hefty $20.53 per share in dividends, which increases your return to 18.6%.
Here are three high-yielders that have recently hiked their dividends in a big way. If any of these entice you, I should note that you should consider buying soon in order to take advantage of their higher dividend payouts in December.
Let's take a look...
1. Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT)
Yield: 5%
Dividend hike: 33%
Lockheed is the world's largest pure-play defense contractor, deriving 60% of its revenue from Department of Defense contracts. The company supplies combat aircraft to the U.S. Air Force and is the prime contractor for F-16 and F-22 fighter jets.
Lockheed raised its dividend 33% in September to a $4.00 annualized rate, good for a 5.4% yield at recent prices. The new dividend is payable Dec. 30 to holders of record as of Dec.1. This was the ninth-consecutive annual dividend increase of at least 10%. And if a 33% dividend increase isn't enough to impress you, Lockheed also authorized an additional $2.5 billion in share repurchases to enhance future earnings growth.