Electric Utilities with the Highest Yields

Can you guess what the oldest electric utility company in the United States is? Can you even guess what state has the oldest electric utility? According to BusinessHistory and EnergyOnline, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. (PCG) can trace its sources back to 1852, making it the oldest American utility. In the mid 1800's, the San Francisco Gas Company was founded. It later merged with the California Electric Light Co., which was founded in 1879 in San Francisco. This was the first electric power company with a central generating station to distribute electricity to multiple individual and business customers.

PG&E trades at 15 times current earnings and 11 times forward earnings, and pays a decent yield of 4.4%. Dividends are paid quarterly. Earnings for the latest quarter were up 8.7% year-over-year on a 14% increase in revenues.

Some of the great features of electric utilities are that they can generally provide relative security, safety, and stability compared to stocks in many other sectors, from the payment of fairly high dividends. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com just updated its list of electric utility stocks and there are more than a couple dozen with yields greater than 3%.

Duke Energy Corporation (DUK) has a price to earnings ratio of 12, a forward P/E ratio of 13, and sports a yield of 5.3%. This Charlotte, North Carolina based company had a 7.7% increase in quarterly revenues, and just increased its dividend slightly. The company reports earnings on October 24.

Integrys Energy Group, Inc. (TEG), based in Chicago, operates in Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota and Canada. The stock trades at 16 times earnings and 14 times forward earnings. The stock pays a yield of 5.7%. Unfortunately, earnings for the latest quarter were down 63% on flat revenues.

If you want a free list of top yielding utilities, you can access a downloadable database of high yield electric utility stocks at WSNN.com, including a couple which yield more than 6%.

Disclosure: Author did not not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com

Stocks Going Ex Dividend the Fifth Week of March

Here is our latest update on the stock trading technique called 'Buying Dividends'. This is the process of buying stocks before the ex dividend date and selling the stock shortly after the ex date at about the same price, yet still being entitled to the dividend. This technique generally works only in bull markets. In flat or choppy markets, you have to be extremely careful.

In order to be entitled to the dividend, you have to buy the stock before the ex-dividend date, and you can't sell the stock until after the ex date. The actual dividend may not be paid for another few weeks. WallStreetNewsNetwork.com has compiled a downloadable and sortable list of the stocks going ex dividend during the next week or two. The list contains many dividend paying companies, all with market caps over $500 million, and yields over 2%. Here are a few examples showing the stock symbol, the market capitalization, the ex-dividend date and the yield.

Nicor Inc. (GAS) market cap: $2.4B ex div date: 3/29/2011 yield: 3.6%

Kilroy Realty Corporation (KRC) market cap: $2.0B ex div date: 3/29/2011 yield: 3.7%

National Health Investors Inc (NHI) market cap: $1.2B ex div date: 3/29/2011 yield: 5.5%

Nucor Corporation (NUE) market cap: $14.8B ex div date: 3/29/2011 yield: 3.1%

PG&E Corporation (PCG) market cap: $18.0B ex div date: 3/29/2011 yield: 4.0%

The additional ex-dividend stocks can be found at wsnn.com. (If you have been to the website before, and the latest link doesn't show up, you may have to empty your cache.) If you like dividend stocks, you should check out the high yield utility stocks and the Monthly Dividend Stocks at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com or WSNN.com.

Dividend definitions:

Declaration date: the day that the company declares that there is going to be an upcoming dividend.

Ex-dividend date: the day on which if you buy the stock, you would not be entitled to that particular dividend; or the first day on which a shareholder can sell the shares and still be entitled to the dividend.

Record date: the day when you must be on the company's books as a shareholder to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is normally set for stocks two business days before the record date.

Payment date: the day on which the dividend payment is actually made, which can be as long at two months after the ex date.

Don't forget to reconfirm the ex-dividend date with the company before implementing this technique.

Disclosure: Author did not own any of the above at the time the article was written.

By Stockerblog.com