Chevron Corp.

BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA $81.70 (Toronto symbol BNS; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $97.9 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Above Average; Dividend yield: 3.9%, www.scotiabank.com) is reportedly looking to sell Scotia- Mocatta, its U.K.-based gold and precious metals trading business....

CHEVRON CORP. $116 (New York symbol CVX; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 1.9 billion; Market cap: $220.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 1.9; Dividend yield: 3.7%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.chevron.com) plans to begin developing its properties in the Duvernay shale oil field in central Alberta....

PHILLIPS 66 $93 (New York symbol PSX; Manufacturing Sector; Shares outstanding: 506.7 million; Market cap: $47.1 billion; Takeover Target Rating: Medium; Divd. yield: 3.0%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.phillips66. com) refines and transports oil and gas, operates Phillips 66 gas stations, and owns 50% of a chemical firm with Chevron Corp.

The company has its roots in Phillips Petroleum, founded in 1917 by brothers Frank and L.E....

ISHARES S&P/TSX 60 INDEX ETF $24 (Toronto symbol XIU; TSINetwork ETF Rating: Conservative Market cap: $10.8 billion) is a low-fee way to buy the top Canadian listed stocks. Specifically, the ETF holds stocks that represent the S&P/TSX 60 Index—the largest, most heavily traded equities on the TSX.

The ETF’s top holdings are Royal Bank, 8.7%; TD Bank, 8.0%; Bank of Nova Scotia, 5.9%; Enbridge, 5.3%; CN Railway, 4.8%; Suncor Energy, 4.5%; Bank of Montreal, 3.8%; TransCanada Corp., 3.3%; BCE, 3.3%; Manulife Financial, 3.1%, Canadian Natural Resources, 3.0%; CIBC, 3.0%; Brookfield Asset Management, 2.8% and Canadian Pacific Railway, 1.9%.

The industry breakdown is as follows: Financials (41%), Resources (29%), Industrials (9%), Telecommuncations (6%), Consumer discretionary (5%), Consumer staples (4%), Information technology (2%), Utilities (2%) and others (2%).

Still, this ETF’s assets are highly concentrated in the financial and resources sectors.

The fund began trading in September 1999....

Chevron and Suncor are close to finishing major projects that should spur their earnings—and dividends—for years to come. Both companies already hold less risk than other producers. That’s because their oil refining businesses cut their exposure to volatile crude oil prices.

CHEVRON CORP....

A growth-by-acquisition strategy helped Parkland Fuel Corp. reach a new high—and sustain a high yield—but it comes with extra risk and added debt.

A: Dream Global REIT, $11.05, symbol DRG.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 175.1 million; Market cap: $1.9 billion; www.dream.ca/global), is a Canadian real estate investment trust that focuses on investing outside the country....

MCDONALD’S CORP. $154 (www.mcdonalds.com) is the world’s largest operator of fast-food restaurants, with 36,500 outlets in 120 countries. It serves a wide variety of food, but is best known for its hamburgers and french fries. With the December 2017 payment, the company will raise its quarterly dividend by 7.4%, Investors will receive $1.01 a share, up from $0.94....

A: Parkland Fuel Corp., $26.14, symbol PKI on Toronto (Shares outstanding: 130.5 million; Market cap: $3.4 billion, www.parkland.ca), operates gas stations, convenience stores and a fuel-distribution business for motorists, businesses, households and wholesale customers in Canada and the U.S.

The company’s shares have moved down from a new high of over $32 in May to today’s price.

Parkland’s shares had moved up from around $23 last August to that new high mostly after Alimentation Couche-Tard, as part of its deal to buy CST, agreed to sell a significant portion of CST’s Canadian assets to Parkland for $986.0 million....

How to determine if TSX dividend stocks will keep on paying, and raising, their dividends