Dividends can produce as much as a third of your total return over long periods, and you can even retire on dividends.
There are 4 key stock dividend dates that are involved with dividend payments:
1- The Declaration Date is several weeks in advance of a dividend payment—it’s when company’s board of directors sets the amount and timing of the proposed payment.
2- The Payable Date is the date set by the board on which the dividend will actually be paid out to shareholders.
3- The Record Date is for shareholders who hold the stock before the payable date and receive the dividend payment. That date is set any number of weeks before the payable date.
4-The Ex-Dividend Date is two business days before the record date and it’s when the shares begin to trade without their dividend. If you buy stocks one day or more before their ex-dividend date, you will still get the dividend. That’s when a stock is said to trade cum-dividend. If you buy on the ex-dividend date or later, you won’t get the dividend. The ex-dividend date is in place to allow pending stock trades to settle.
We think very highly of stocks that have been paying dividends for five or more years, at TSI Network. Many of these stocks fit in well with our three-part Successful Investor philosophy:
1- Invest mainly in well-established companies;
2- Spread your money out across most if not all of the five main economic sectors (Manufacturing & Industry; Resources & Commodities; Consumer; Finance; and Utilities);
3- Downplay or avoid stocks in the broker/media limelight.
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The new series, called Cosmo Red Hot Reads, will help Harlequin profit from fast-growing demand for erotica, such as the best-selling Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy. Harlequin has also hired best-selling author Sylvia Day to launch this new series, which should help attract new readers.
Torstar is a buy....
The company will spend $200 million to build this pipeline. That’s equal to 16% of the $1.25 billion, or $1.62 a share, that Enbridge earned in 2012. The new line should begin operating in late 2015. Enbridge also has a 25-year shipping contract with Hangingstone’s developer, which cuts the risk of this investment.
Enbridge is a buy....
In May 2012, Finning paid Caterpillar $305.8 million U.S. for Bucyrus’s distribution and support businesses in South America and the U.K.; Bucyrus makes equipment for clients in the mining and oil sands industries. In October 2012, Finning paid $159.2 million for Bucyrus’s Canadian operations.
Thanks to these new operations, Finning’s revenue rose 12.3% in 2012, to a record $6.6 billion from $5.9 billion in 2011. Earnings jumped 30.1%, to $337.6 million, or $1.96 a share, from $259.4 million, or $1.51 a share. Bucyrus contributed $0.09 a share to the latest earnings.
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That’s down 16.3% from $1.2 billion, or $1.62 a share, in 2011. Cash flow per share fell 16.1%, to $4.80 from $5.72. Revenue declined 39.1%, to $5.2 billion from $8.5 billion. That’s partly because it sold $4.0 billion of assets in 2012, including stakes in its shale gas properties in B.C. and Alberta.
Encana benefits from its hedging program, which has shielded it from falling gas prices. In 2012, it sold its gas at an average of $4.82 per thousand cubic feet, compared to today’s price of $3.16. For 2013, Encana has hedged 52% of its forecast production at $4.39 per thousand cubic feet.
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SNC’s quick response to these situations, including replacing its chief executive officer and other executives, helped prevent permanent damage to its 102-year-old reputation. It has also brought in stronger oversight and compliance procedures.
Due to higher than-expected costs on a powerplant project, SNC’s 2012 earnings fell 18.4%, to $309.1 million, or $2.04 a share. In 2011, the company earned $378.8 million, or $2.49 a share.
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The company should keep benefiting from rising demand for trains to ship oil. That’s because a lack of new pipelines has forced more producers to ship their crude by train. CP will probably ship 70,000 carloads of oil this year, up 438.5% from 13,000 in 2011.
CP Rail is a buy....
As part of this decision, Suncor paid $515 million to Total SA for its 49% stake in Voyageur. The price is equal to 11% of the $4.9 billion, or $3.16 a share, that Suncor earned in 2012. Buying back this stake will make it easier for Suncor to use some of Voyageur’s equipment at its other oil sands projects.
Suncor is still a buy....
Canada Bread supplies around a third of Maple Leaf’s sales (see page 44). As a result, it has a big role in Maple Leaf’s restructuring.
For example, in 2011, Canada Bread opened a new $100-million bakery in Hamilton, Ontario. That let it close two outdated facilities in Toronto and shift their production to the new plant; it plans to close a third Toronto bakery in 2013.
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Maple Leaf is starting to see the benefits of a major restructuring plan, which includes building new plants and eliminating unprofitable products. It’s also installing a new computer system that will give its managers more timely information.
In 2012, Maple Leaf’s earnings rose 40.5%, to $122.7 million, or $0.81 a share. In 2011, it earned $87.3 million, or $0.58 a share. If you disregard restructuring costs, earnings per share rose at a more modest rate of 5.0%, to $1.06 from $1.01.
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In its fiscal 2013 third quarter, which ended December 31, 2012, Saputo earned $130.0 million, or $0.65 a share. That’s up 0.2% from $129.8 million, or $0.64 a share, a year earlier. Revenue was unchanged at $1.8 billion. Unfavourable currency exchange rates offset the positive impact of higher cheese prices in the U.S. The company’s Argentinian division also sold fewer products at lower prices, which weighed on Saputo’s overall earnings.
These results do not include privately held Morningstar Foods, which Saputo bought for $1.4 billion in January 2013. Morningstar makes milk products, including cream, ice cream and cottage cheese, at 10 plants in the U.S.
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