Dividends

As a shareholder dividends are the key to earning more. Dividends are cash payments that you receive for just owning shares.  Over the long-term some investors may actually receive more in dividends than what it costs to buy the shares in the first place. 

But the key is for companies to continue to pay dividends over the long-term. Dividend Growth Stocks writes, “Sure most CEOs give lip-service to their commitment to shareholders, but what happens when times are hard. When the economy turns do…

It's possible to earn more without getting a second job. There are hundreds of quality companies which will pay you (in cash) just for holding their shares.

A dividend is just that, a cash payment made to shareholders. For example let’s take a look at Wal-Mart (WMT:NYSE), their annual dividend is currently $1.88 per share. If you own 125 shares you will receive $235 per year in cash that’s 125 shares multiplied by $1.88. Each share costs $78 so you would have to invest $9750 (125 shares x $78) …

What are stocks?

Stocks or shares represent ownership in a company. For example if Company XYZ has 100 shares, and you buy 1 share you own 1% of the company. If you purchase all 100 shares you would own the entire company. A company like Walmart currently has 3.26 billion shares, and each share sells for $79.81. Once you buy shares you become part owner of the company, and as an owner you are entitled to share in the profits of the company. Profits of the company are distributed to shareholders…

Why should you care about dividends? Simply put, dividends add money to your portfolio, they directly contribute to your net worth. A dividend is a cash payment made to shareholders. For example if you own 1000 shares in company XYZ and the company pays a dollar dividend per share per year, you will earn $1000 (1000 shares x $1) in cash every year as long as you own those shares and the company continues to payout the dividend. Over time the dividends can add up, and provide you with financial f…

Do you know which of the 20 most valuable brands in the world pay dividends? Interbrand recently announced their list of the 100 most valuable brands in the world. I thought it would be interesting to view the top 20 in the list and see which ones pay a dividend. After all dividends are the key to successful investing.

Here are the top 20 brands (dividend payers in green):

1. Apple
2. Google
3. Coca-Cola
4. IBM
5. Microsoft
6. GE
7. McDonald’s
8. Samsung
9. Intel
10. Toyota
11. Mercedes-Benz
12. BMW
13. Cisco
14. Disney
15. HP
…

Imagine earning $385,024 each year for the rest of your life, and getting annual increases too! I’ve written many times about the power of dividends especially increasing dividends.

Now let’s take a look at a real-life example with Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart became a public company on October 1, 1970 and started issuing shares at $16.50 each. Since then the company has had eleven 2 for 1 stock splits. Basically this means that if you purchased 100 shares in 1970, today you would own 204,800 shares:

19…

Would you like to give yourself a raise? You can by simply investing in companies that regularly increase their dividends. Dividend increases mean more money in your pocket. An increasing supply of dividends increases your income. You can use that increased amount of money for anything you wish, or re-invest it and earn more for years to come.

Here are some Canadian companies and their average dividend growth over the last 10 years:

18.2% - Canadian National Railway Company (CNR)
13.7% - BCE I…

The secret to building your wealth over time is simple, buy revenue generating assets. Your home, car, boat, furniture, or gadgets are not revenue generating assets.

In fact these types of assets actually cost you money to own, think about your maintenance costs, insurance costs, and operating costs for each of these items. Revenue generating assets are assets that actually put money into your pocket, and the best revenue generating assets are those that increase the amount of money going into …

Would you prefer a dividend and slow growth or fast growth with no dividend?

Morningstar recently published an article answering that exact question, and I would like to share it with my readers. The article titled "A Dividend and Slow Growth or Fast Growth With No Dividend?" asks the question, whether you'd rather own Coca-Cola, a company that lacks exciting growth prospects but pays a reliable dividend, or  Amazon.com, which doesn't pay a dividend but has featured strong growth. The majority …

Yes you can you achieve financial independence and retire on dividends alone. However it requires some planning and investing intelligently.

I’d like to share a blog post Dividend Growth Investor wrote about a year ago discussing the concept of retiring on dividends. Dividend Growth Investor writes about the 5 important rules to follow in order to live off dividends:

1. Focus on companies that have a long history of paying dividends and raising dividends
2. Buy stocks when they are undervalued
3. E…