Dividend Stocks

Dividends are profit distributions made to shareholders by a company.

Instead of reinvesting all of the profits, a company may decide to distribute the profits.

For many years, dividends seemed to have fallen out of favor among investors. The emphasis was on growth or appreciation of stock prices rather than using stocks as a source of income and reinvestment. However, as the Baby Boomers retire and other investors seek more stable forms of income and returns, dividend earning stocks are getting a second look.

Some stocks allow dividends to be automatically reinvested or you can have the payment sent directly to you for a small stream of passive income. If you are searching for dividend payments then do a little homework to determine how long each stock has been paying dividends. If only for a few years then it may or may continue. On the other hand, some companies have a long history of paying dividends such as:

When examining dividend stocks look for:

1. How long has the company paid dividends?
2. Is the payment increasing, decreasing or maintaining? If changing - why?

	Book: All About Dividend Investing
	Book: Beating the S&P with Dividends: How to Build a Superior Portfolio of Dividend Yielding Stocks