Paul Lim, at the N.Y. Times, writes about how, after a devastating recession, changes in dividend payments are finally on the right track:
Since January, 136 companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index have either increased their payouts or initiated new dividends, collectively bolstering payments by $11 billion this year. The list includes companies in a broad array of industries, like Starbucks, which initiated its first dividend; Marriott International, which reinstated its cash dividend; and Travelers, which raised its dividend.
The recent trend is a big improvement from 2009, when there were 157 dividend increases and initiations versus 78 decreases or suspensions. Over all, those actions collectively cut payments to shareholders by $37 billion, a record.
Lim speculates that increases in dividends might portend a rising stock market.
Source: N. Y. Times
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