Dividend Increases At Record Low, Dividend Cuts Highest In Over 50 Years

According to data from Standard & Poor's, a record low 233 of the approximately 7,000 publicly owned companies increased their dividend payment during the second quarter of 2009. This is a 48.8% drop from the second quarter of 2008.

Dividend decreases in the second quarter were posted by 250 companies, the highest number since the second quarter of 1957.

Senior Index Analyst at Standard & Poor's Howard Silverblatt said, "The current trend to conserve cash and cut dividends has become defensive, with even relatively healthy companies choosing to reduce payouts. Until we see the economy better, and not just for one quarter, many companies will remain gun shy about parting with their cash."

Some companies that raised their dividend in Q2 included:

• General Mills (NYSE: GIS)
  
• PetSmart (Nasdaq: PETM)
  
• Darden (NYSE: DRI)
  
• Del Monte Foods (NYSE: DLM)
  
• Medtronic (NYSE: MDT)
  
• Target (NYSE: TGT)
  
• Clorox (NYSE: CLX)
  
• Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH)
  
• PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP)
  
• IBM (NYSE: IBM)
  
• Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ)

Some companies that cut their dividend in Q2 included:

• SL Green Realty (NYSE: SLG)
  
• Boston Properties (NYSE: BXP)
  
• BioMed Realty Trust (NYSE: BMR)
  
• Steel Dynamics (Nasdaq: STLD)
  
• SunTrust Banks (NYSE: STI)
  
• Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF)
  
• US Steel (NYSE: X)
  
• Ethan Allen (NYSE: ETH)
  
• Ingersoll Rand (NYSE: IR)
  
• Goldman (NYSE: GS)

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