Their market leadership cuts your risk

Article Excerpt

Small market cap firms are generally riskier than bigger companies. You can cut that risk by focusing on market leaders with long histories of paying dividends such as North West Co. and Russel Metals. NORTH WEST COMPANY $37 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol NWC; High-Growth Payer Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 47.9 million; Market cap: $1.8 billion; Dividend yield: 4.1%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.northwest.ca) sells food and everyday products and services at 219 stores. Its outlets are mainly in northern communities across Canada, Alaska, the South Pacific and the Caribbean. North West has paid regular dividends for over 33 years. It last raised your quarterly dividend with the October 2022 payment to $0.38 a share, up 2.4% from $0.37. The new annual rate of $1.52 yields a high 4.1%. In its fiscal 2023 second quarter, ended July 31, 2022, sales rose 2.4%, to $578.9 million from $565.1 million a year earlier. Same-store sales fell 4.1% in the quarter compared to last year. Notably,…