These U.S. consumers offer steady dividends

Article Excerpt

PROCTER & GAMBLE CO. $89 (New York symbol PG; Income-Growth Portfolio, Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 2.6 billion; Market cap: $231.4 billion; Dividend yield: 3.2%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Highest; www.pg.com) is one of the world’s largest makers of household and personal-care goods. Starting with the May 2018 payment, Procter raised its quarterly dividend by 4.0%. Investors now receive $0.7172 a share, up from $0.6896. The new annual rate of $2.87 yields 3.2%. The company has paid dividends for 128 years and has increased its payout annually for the past 62. For its fiscal 2019 first quarter, ended September 30, 2018, Procter’s sales were unchanged from a year earlier at $16.69 billion. On a comparable basis and excluding foreign exchange rates, sales improved 4%. Higher comparable sales of Beauty products (up 7%), Grooming products (up 4%), Health products (up 4%) and Fabric and Home products (up 5%) offset a 1% decline in sales of Baby, Feminine and Family Care products. In the quarter, excluding one-time items, earnings declined 0.4%,…