Dividend Increases, July 16-31, 2014

On the last day of July, the markets took a significant nosedive. The Dow shed more than 300 points and the S&P 500 tumbled nearly 2%. Argentina's second default in 12 years is being blamed, along with fears that yesterday's strong GDP numbers could move the Fed to start raising interest rates.

As dividend growth investors, days like today shouldn't bother us too much. Dividends are not affected by stock market volatility. In fact, lower prices mean greater opportunities to pick up bargains!

One of the ways I identify dividend growth candidates is by monitoring announcements of dividend increases for stocks in my watch list. I also use this information to track the yield on cost (YoC) of stocks I own, as I need to make YoC adjustments when dividends increase (or decrease). I also use the information to properly track DivGro's projected annual dividend income.

Below is the table of dividend increases announced in the last two weeks of July, sorted by the last column, %Increase. Dividend amounts are annualized.

Dividend Increases: July 16-31, 2014

Company	Ticker	Price (Jul 31)	Previous Dividend	New Dividend	Current Yield	%Increase
Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd.	MRH	29.53	0.50	0.80	2.71%	+60.00
Suncor Energy Inc.	SU	41.07	0.92	1.12	2.73%	+21.74
UGI Corp	UGI	48.54	1.18	1.31	2.69%	+10.61
The J.M. Smucker Company	SJM	99.64	2.32	2.56	2.57%	+10.34
Crane Co.	CR	68.61	1.20	1.32	1.92%	+10.00
Reinsurance Group of America Inc	RGA	80.26	1.20	1.32	1.64%	+10.00
Union Pacific Corporation	UNP	98.31	1.82	2.00	2.03%	+9.89
Kellogg Company	K	59.83	1.84	1.96	3.28%	+6.52
Questar Corporation	STR	22.24	0.72	0.76	3.42%	+5.56
Norfolk Southern Corp.	NSC	101.66	2.16	2.28	2.24%	+5.56
Stanley Black & Decker, Inc.	SWK	87.45	2.00	2.08	2.38%	+4.00
Alliance Holdings GP, L.P.	AHGP	70.16	3.39	3.48	4.96%	+2.65
Alliance Resource Partners, L.P.	ARLP	50.21	2.45	2.50	4.98%	+2.25
Energy Transfer Partners LP	ETP	55.74	3.74	3.82	6.85%	+2.14
Oneok Partners LP	OKS	56.08	2.98	3.04	5.42%	+2.01
Global Partners LP	GLP	43.27	2.50	2.55	5.89%	+2.00
Holly Energy Partners, L.P.	HEP	33.71	2.03	2.06	6.11%	+1.48
Williams Partners L.P.	WPZ	50.64	3.62	3.67	7.24%	+1.33
Exterran Partners, L.P.	EXLP	27.64	2.15	2.17	7.85%	+0.93
Kinder Morgan Energy Partners LP	KMP	81.02	5.52	5.56	6.86%	+0.72

Previous post: Dividend Increases: July 1-15, 2014

Energy Transfer Partners (ETP) is a master limited partnership that owns and operates natural gas and NGL pipelines, natural gas storage and distribution terminals, and natural gas processing facilities. On Thursday, 24 July, ETP declared a quarterly distribution of 95.5¢ per unit, an increase of just over 2% from its previous quarterly distribution of 93.5¢ per unit. This is the 3^rd distribution increase announced by ETP since I bought shares in January 2013. The increase adds $8 to DivGro's projected annual dividend income.

Several dividend increases announced in this period top 7%:

• Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd (MRH) | growth 5 yrs | yield 2.71% @ $29.53 | 5-yr CAGR 8.92%
MRH provides customized and insurance and reinsurance solutions to the global market, through subsidiaries in Bermuda, the United States, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. On July 30, the company declared a dividend of 20¢ per share, payable on October 15 to shareholders of record on September 30. 

• Suncor Energy Inc. (SU) | growth 13 yrs | yield 3.04% @ $74.80 | 5-yr CAGR 16.10%
SU is an integrated energy company, focused on developing petroleum resource basins in Canada's Athabasca oil sands. Recently, SU increased its annual dividend by 21% to 28¢ per share. The dividend is payable on September 25, to shareholders of record on September 4. 

• UGI Corp (UGI) | growth 27 yrs | yield 2.69% @ $48.54 | 5-yr CAGR 7.92%
UGI is a holding company that distributes, stores, transports and markets energy products and related services through subsidiaries. The company declared a quarterly dividend of 32.63¢ per share, an increase of more than 10% over the prior quarterly dividend. The dividend is payable October 1. 

• The J.M. Smucker Company (SJM) | growth 16 yrs | yield 2.57% @ $99.64 | 5-yr CAGR 11.79%
SJM operates primarily in the manufacturing and marketing of branded food products. The majority of the company's sales are in the United States. SJM's board of directors approved an increase in its quarterly dividend to 64¢ per share, an increase of over 10%. The dividend is payable September 2. 

• Crane Co. (CR) | growth 9 yrs | yield 1.92% @ $68.61 | 5-yr CAGR 8.83%
CR is a diversified manufacturer of engineered industrial products, operating in Aerospace & Electronics, Engineered Materials, Merchandising Systems, Fluid Handling and Controls. Recently, CR increased its quarterly dividend from 30¢ per share to 33¢ per share, an increase of 10%. The dividend is payable on September 9, to shareholders of record on 29 August. 

• Reinsurance Group of America Inc (RGA) | growth 5 yrs | yield 1.64% @ $80.26 | 5-yr CAGR 63.38%
RGA is an insurance holding company engaged in the reinsurance of individual and group coverages. Recently, SU increased its quarterly dividend from 30¢ per share to 33¢ per share, an increase of 10%. 
The dividend is payable on August 29, to shareholders of record on August 6. 

• Union Pacific Corporation (UNP) | growth 8 yrs | yield 2.03% @ $98.31 | 5-yr CAGR 20.06%
UNP owns several transportation companies. The principal operating company, Union Pacific Railroad Company, links 23 states in the western 66% of the company. UNP's board of directors approved a 10% dividend to 50¢ per share, up from 45¢ per share in the prior quarter. The dividend is payable October 1 to shareholders of record on August 29.

Please note: these stocks are not recommendations – readers should do their own research before buying shares.

Do you own shares of any of these companies (or do you plan to buy some)?