matisse capital management

More Companies Raising Dividends

The following companies recently announced increases in their dividend payments to shareholders, even as many businesses have cut payouts during this recession.   

   DEL, Del Monte Foods - from $0.04 to $0.05, quarterly

   DRI, Darden Restaurants - from $0.20 to $0.25 quarterly

   DUK, Duke Energy Corp. - from $0.23 to $0.24, quarterly

   MDT, Medtronic Inc. - from $0.188 to $0.205, quarterly

   O, Realty Income Corporation - from $0.1420625 to $0.142375, monthly

   PETM, Petsmart Inc. - from $0.03 to $0.10, quarterly

More Dividend Slashers - 6/20

   BPOP, Popular, Inc. - from $0.02 to suspended

   BXP, Boston Properties - from $0.68 to $0.50, quarterly

   ELT, Callaway Golf Co. - from $0.07 to $0.01, quarterly

   PGC, Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp. - from $0.16 to $0.05, quarterly

   VMC, Vulcan Materials Co. - from $0.49 to $0.25, quarterly

Market News Around the World

Swiss bank regulators take a tough approach.

National Grid's (NGG) powerful dividend.

Unilever's "safe dividend" goes quarterly. 

Judge orders former Health South CEO to pay shareholders billions.

Canada needs accountants.

Medtronic raises its dividend.

'East' Germany coping better than west.

GM will sell Saab to Swedish carmaker.

Boston Properties (BXP) cuts its dividend.

UK real estate lending 'close to zero.'

Bulldozing US cities for their survival.

In Canada, resale home prices hit a new high.

The US housing recovery that isn't.

20 largest stock buybacks.

More Companies Raising Dividends

The following companies recently announced increases in their dividend payments to shareholders, even as many businesses have cut payouts during this recession.   

   BCR, CR Bard - from $0.16 to $0.17, quarterly

   CLX, Clorox Corporation - from $0.46 to $0.50, quarterly

   NFG, National Fuel Gas - from $0.325 to $0.335, quarterly

   TGT, Target Corp. - from $0.16 to $0.17, quarterly

   VLGEA, Village Super Markets - from $0.20 to $0.215, quarterly

   VSEC, VSE Corporation - from $0.045 to $0.05, quarterly

Japan's Home Prices, Post-Bank Crisis

The US seems to be adopting the "Japan approach" to its current banking and housing crises - a slow, patch the holes as they appear strategy.  In 1990, Japan's banking crisis began in earnest. The Nikkei plunged and so did property values, as you can see, left.  Nominal home price changes have been negative each year since. The housing index chart (below, left) shows that home prices rose over 40% between 1985 and 1990 but, on an inflation adjusted basis, they are now close to 1980 levels.  Will US housing follow?  Looking back, most experts agree the cause of Japan's crisis was excessive risk taking by banks that filtered through the economy.  A combination of declining profit margins, deregulation, and weak regulation of banks led to: aggressive expansion, credit liberalization and inflated asset values.  Sound familiar?  Hopefully the US housing market will not go sideways, or gradually downward, for 20 years like Japan's.

Japan's financial crisis took an entire decade to play out as follows:

1989-90:The stock market peaked in 1989, then collapsed in 1990, dropping an incredible 43% (the Dow is currently down 38% from its peak).  Japan's banks were allowed to hold equities as part of their capital base.  Over the next three years the market experienced high volatility, with a general downward trend.

1992: Land and home prices begin a steep decline and defaults rise on consumer loans.

UK Dividend Stocks Weathering the Storm

Are UK dividend stocks holding up better than their American counterparts?  According to Investment Week: "of the UK companies reporting in Q1, 65% increased dividends, 10% maintained... with just 25% making some sort of cut."  The article also noted that: "The worst cuts have come for stock-specific reasons and have all been telegraphed by clear balance sheet weakness."

Dividend Slashers - 6/7

   CBL, CBL & Associates Properties - from $0.37 to $0.11, quarterly

   CSA, Cogdell Spencer - from $0.225 to $0.11, quarterly

   KRC, Kilroy Realty - from $0.58 to $0.35, quarterly

   RTP, Rio Tinto, PLC- interim dividend canceled

   STLD, Steel Dynamics - from $0.10 to $0.075, quarterly

   WOR, Worthington Industries, Inc. - from $0.17 to $0.10, quarterly

Performance of Global Markets YTD

The performances of various stock indices around the world, since the beginning of January 2009, are listed below.  It is evident from this list that investors have a higher appetite for risk than they did a year ago, as emerging markets (especially the BRIC countries) are outperforming the others by a wide margin.  Or perhaps investors perceive emerging markets as less risky and less exposed to the banking problems in the US and UK? 

   RTS.RS, RTSI Index, Russia: +88.3%

   BSESN, BSE Sensex, India: +49.1%

   SSE, SSE Composite Index, China: +47.3%

   BVSP, Bovespa Index, Brazil: +44.0%

   STI, Straits Times Index, Singapore:  +34.9%

   HSI, Hang Seng Index, Hong Kong: +27.3%

   OMX, OMSX Stockholm 30, Sweden: +20.2%

   GSPTSE, TSX Composite, Canada: +18.6%

   AORD, All Ordinaries, Australia: +7.9%

   GDAXI, DAX Index, Germany: +5.9%

   FCHI, CAC 40 Index, France: +4.7%

   NZ50, NZX Index, New Zealand: +3.4%

   FTSE, FTSE 100 Index, UK: +0.7%

   DJI, Dow Jones Industrial Average: -0.2%