PM announced 09/10 a quarterly dividend increase from 0.94 to 1.00.   The dividend is payable October. 10, 2014 to shareholders of record as of Sept. 25, 2014.

This is an increase of 6.4%.  It’s not quite as good as the last few increases but still well higher than inflation.  For a higher yielding stock, it’s still a great raise.  At a 6% rate of increase , the dividend would double in 12 years.  I would expect something a little higher than that over the next 10 years if the last 10 are any guide.

This would mark the 7th straight year of increases after the spinoff from Altria Group.

Since I own 117 shares, this will increase my yearly dividends by $28.08.  I’ve had 30 stocks in my portfolio  increase their dividend already this year.

VZ announced 09/04 a quarterly dividend increase from 0.53 to 0.55.   The dividend is payable Nov. 3, 2014 to shareholders of record as of Oct. 10, 2014.

This is an increase of 3.8%.  It’s not great but about what I’d expect from a telecom company.  VZ is a company that I expect a higher starting yield and slower growth like a utility.  This balances out some of positions with lower starting yields but higher growth.

This is the 8th straight year that VZ has increased their dividend.  Going forward it will be interesting to see what impact the buyout of the remaining stake of Verizon Wireless from Vodafone will have on earnings.

Since I own 276 shares, this will increase my yearly dividends by $22.08.  I’ve had 29 stocks in my portfolio  increase their dividend already this year.

MO announced Thursday a quarterly dividend increase from 0.48 to 0.52.   The dividend is payable October 10, 2014 to shareholders of record as of Sept. 15, 2014.

This is a solid increase of 8.3%.  After this raise, Altria Group’s dividend is approaching the 5% mark.  Altria Group has raised its dividend 48 times in 45 years!

I love dividend raises!  MO is the type of company that can truly make you rich.  What’s not to love? A high yield and high dividend growth!  Count me in.  I’m planning on adding to my position a little before the ex dividend date.

Don’t forget that MO also owns about 28% of SABMiller.  At some point, this could be spun off generating additional shareholder value.

Since I own 165.19 shares, this will increase my yearly dividends by $26.43.  I’ve had 28 stocks in my portfolio  increase their dividend already this year.

BBL announced this week a semi-annual dividend increase from 0.59 to 0.62.   Since I’m in the U.S., I hold ADR’s , and each ADR is worth two shares.  So my dividend payment will go from $1.18 to $1.24 per ADR that’s payable Sept. 23, 2014 to holders of record Sept. 5, 2014.  This represents a 5.1% increase to dividend.

If you’ve been keeping up with BBL, they recently announced a “demerger” as they call it where they plan to spin-off a metals & mining business.  Shareholders didn’t respond well, sending shares down 5% earlier this week.

After this spin-off , BHP Billiton will almost be exclusively focused on iron ore, copper, coal and petroleum and possibly potash basins.  Shareholders of BHP Billiton will receive shares in the new company on a pro rata basis.  This new company will be headquarted in Perth and listed on the Australian stock exchange with a second listing in South Africa.  This new business would combine aluminum, coal , nickel, manganese and silver.

BBL has paid dividends for 11 consecutive years making them a Dividend Contender.

Shares are still up since the beginning of the year and quite a bit higher than my basis.  I plan to add just a little to BBL so they are a full position.  I haven’t decided what I’ll do with the new company.  I will likely sell even if they pay dividends since the dividends would require foreign taxes.  Please note that by holding BBL, they are based in London so I don’t have to pay any additional foreign withholding tax.

Since I own 106.66 shares, this will increase my yearly dividends by $12.80.  I’ve had 27 stocks in my portfolio  increase their dividend already this year.

WAG announced 08/05 a quarterly dividend increase from $0.315 to $0.3375 per share that’s payable Sept. 12, 2014 to holders of record as of August 21, 2014.  This is a 7.1% increase.  WAG has been on a run since the Express Scripts fiasco in 2012 when I picked up shares.  Walgreen’s said recently they wouldn’t relocate their headquarters and shares were punished over 12%.  Even still, I’m up over 100% from my cost basis.  My only dilemma now is that I think the share price is still a little expensive with shares yielding just 2.1%.  Currently I plan to just hold unless shares drop to a P/E under 20.

Since I own 68 shares this will increase my yearly dividends by $6.12.  This is the 27th stock in my portfolio to increase their dividend this year.

You can find all of my dividend increase announcements here.

I’m a little behind with this announcement since I’ve been on vacation.  Better late than never.  Even while I’m not working, I’ve got companies working for me and giving me a pay raise!

NSC announced 07/22 a quarterly dividend increase from $0.54 to $0.57 per share that’s payable Sept. 10, 2014 to holders of record as of August 1, 2014.  This is a 6% increase.  NSC is one of the two railroads I own, CSX being the other.  I’ve done well with this stock and plan to hold for the long-term.  Since 1982, NSC has paid 128 quarters of dividends and 14 consecutive years of raises!

Since I own 72 shares this will increase my yearly dividends by $8.64.  This is the 26th stock in my portfolio to increase their dividend this year.

You can find all of my dividend increase announcements here.

KMI announced yesterday a quarterly dividend increase of from $0.42 to $0.43 per share that’s payable August 15, 2014 to holders of record July 31, 2014.  This represents a 5% increase to the cash distribution from the second quarter of 2013.

This marks two consecutive quarters of dividend increases after keeping them the same for a couple of quarters last year.  This is the 52nd distribution increase since 1997!

KMI remains a full position in my portfolio and I’m currently holding with no plans to accumulate more unless there is a big correction.

Since I own 345.25 shares this will increase my yearly dividends by $13.81.  I’ve had 25 stocks in my portfolio  increase their dividend already this year.

OHI announced today a quarterly dividend increase from $0.50 to $0.51 per share that’s payable Aug 15, 2014 to holders of record as of July 31, 2014.  What’s impressive is that this is their 8th consecutive quarterly dividend increase and the third time they’ve increased dividends this year, the first time being in January when they also increased the quarterly dividend by $0.01.  I love multiple increases in the same year!

OHI happens to be the only REIT I own.  I’m comfortable in the Healthcare REIT space and like the track record of this company.

OHI currently yields 5.3%, the price has come up a little from three months ago.  OHI is a Dividend Contender, having increased their dividend for 12 straight years.

Since I own 200 shares this will increase my yearly dividends by $8.00.

What I love most as a DG investor is collecting dividends.  My close second love would be dividend increases.  I love seeing companies increase their dividends year after year.

COP is the latest in dividend increases for my portfolio.  I’m happy to be a shareholder and hope to keep accumulating more shares of this wonderful company.

ConocoPhillips announced yesterday a 5.7% increase to their quarterly dividend in the amount of  $0.04 from $0.69 to $0.73 per share that’s payable September 2, 2014 to holders of record as of July 21, 2014.

COP is a Dividend Contender and has paid higher dividends consectuively for 13 years.  This raise brings their dividend yield to 3.4%.  With a payout ratio of only 41%, I believe I can count on COP to keep raising dividends for the forseable future.

Since I own 99.24 shares, this will increase my yearly dividends by $15.88.  This is the 25th stock in my portfolio to increase their dividend this year.

You can find all of my dividend increase announcements here.

MDT is the latest in dividend increases for my portfolio.  I’m happy to be a shareholder and hope to keep accumulating more shares of this wonderful company.  The price just seems to keep going up and so do the dividends.

Medtronic announced yesterday a 9% increase to their quarterly dividend in the amount of  $0.025 from $0.28 to $0.305 per share that’s payable July 25, 2014 to holders of record as of July 3, 2014.

MDT is a Dividend Champion and has paid higher dividends consectuively for 37 years!  This raise brings their dividend yield to 2% and their payout ratio to 30%.  This leaves plenty of room for further increases in the future.

Since I own 96.09 shares, this will increase my yearly dividends by $9.61.  This is the 24rd stock in my portfolio to increase their dividend this year.

You can find all of my dividend increase announcements here.