Below are some dividend paying companies with upward price momentum. They all have market capitalizations greater than $1 billion, and share prices that have increased more than 20% within the last 90 days.
Coca-Cola FEMSA (NYSE: KOF) shares have been riding new multiyear highs since the beginning of 2012. The company's share price rose more than 30% higher year to date. The Mexico City based Coca-Cola bottler has a dividend yield of around 1.6% and a market capitalization near $24.8 billion. Analysts' long-term EPS growth forecast is around 13.3% and the firm's operating margin is higher than the industry average. The stock has outperformed Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) and the broader markets over the previous six months.
Dallas-based Dean Foods (NASDAQ: DF) was the best-performing S&P 500 stock in May and was trading Thursday near a multiyear high. In May, the company posted better-than-expected first-quarter earnings and offered optimistic guidance. This dairy products producer has an approximate $3.1 billion market capitalization and a long-range EPS growth forecast around 13.2%. Over the previous six months, the stock has outperformed Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD) and the broader markets.
See also: Dean Foods Up 10% on Strong Earnings and Guidance
Expedia (NASDAQ: EXPE) has seen a couple of analyst downgrades recently despite forecasts for continued strong growth. The dividend yield of this approximately $6.1 billion market cap company is close to 0.8%. The company's long-term EPS growth forecast is around 11.5%. Shares were trading about 66% higher year to date despite pulling back a bit on recent downgrades. The stock has outperformed competitors Orbitz Worldwide (NYSE: OWW) and Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN) over the preceding three months.
Family Dollar Stores (NYSE: FDO) has recently seen a couple of analyst upgrades and thus reached a new multi-year high. The discount retailer has a dividend yield of around 1.2% and a market capitalization near $8.2 billion. The firm's return on equity is about 33.8%. Moreover, the company's share price is up more than 20% over the previous quarter despite an approximate 4% pullback from a recent high. The stock has outperformed competitors Dollar General (NYSE: DG) and Walmart (NYSE: WMT) over the past 90 days.
See also: Big Growth Plans for Target and Family Dollar
Ferrellgas Partners (NYSE: FGP) exceeded earning and sales estimates in the most recent quarter, due in part to cost cutting efforts. The propane distributor has a dividend yield of around 10.7% and a market capitalization close to $1.5 billion. Shares have surged more than 20% in the past month, but are still more than 11% below their 52-week high. The CEO and CFO have recently purchased more than 40,000 shares. Year to date, the stock has outperformed larger rival AmeriGas Partners (NYSE: APU).
See also: Hewlett-Packard, Yahoo! and Other Stocks Insiders Are Buying
UK-based InterContinental Hotels Group (NYSE: IHG) has seen its share price rise more than 35% since the beginning of the 2012 and is trading near a multiyear high. Analysts expect the company to report year-over-year growth in both sales and EPS for the second quarter. The company has an approximate $7.2 billion market capitalization and a return on equity of around 102.4%. In addition, the company offers a dividend yield of around 2.2%. The stock has outperformed peers Hyatt Hotels (NYSE: H) and Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) over the previous six months.
Action Items:
ETFs: Traders interested in dividend-focused exchange traded funds (ETFs) might want to consider the following funds:
- PowerShares KBW High Dividend Yield Financial Portfolio (NYSE: KBWD) is up around 8% year to date.
- WisdomTree Equity Income Fund (NYSE: DHS) is up more than 6% year to date.
- WisdomTree SmallCap Dividend Fund (NYSE: DES) is up nearly 6% year to date.
Traders may prefer to consider these alternate positions in high-yield dividend stocks:
- Torch Energy Royalty Trust (NYSE: TRU) has a dividend yield close to 39.8%.
- BBVA Banco Frances (NYSE: BFR) has a dividend yield around 33.7%.
- James Hardie Industries (NYSE: JHX) has a dividend yield near 19.3%.