677% Dividend Growth (and More to Come)

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: July 20, 2022

Welcome back to Contrarian Outlook, the only dividend research service focused on 6% weekly returns.

What a formula! Wash any 2022 losses away with this swift “6% every seven days” solution.

I kid, of course. This rate of return, while not sustainable, sure is nice when it happens. Especially in a dumpster fire market like this one.

So thank you, UnitedHealth Group (UNH)! In these pages last week, we called out UNH as a recession-resistant stock because the health carrier is always growing EPS at a 10% annualized rate.

Thanks to these profit gains, UNH’s dividend has been doubling every few years.… Read more

If You See a Dividend Stock That Does This, It’s Time to Buy

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: July 19, 2022

Buying into companies that split their stocks tilts the odds sharply in your favor—and buying a “splitter” that grows its payout will help you do even better.

Today we’re going to look at how you can “front run” the next dividend split for fast share-price (and dividend!) growth.

“But wait,” you’re probably thinking. “Aren’t share splits meaningless when it comes to the stock’s overall value?”

True! Let’s look at the case of Amazon.com (AMZN), which performed a share split last month. After the close of trading on Friday, June 3, the company divided each of its shares (which closed at $2,447 that day) into 20 pieces, so the stock opened at $124.79 on Monday, June 6.… Read more

Beat the Recession AND Inflation With This “3-D” Portfolio (Yields 8%)

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: July 18, 2022

When it comes to high-yield closed-end funds (CEFs), I’m a big fan of the “three Ds”: discounts, diversification and—of course—dividends!

These days, a “3-D” portfolio is a snap to put together, with CEF dividends at multi-year highs and oversold discounts everywhere across the asset class.

Below, we’ll look at a three-fund, bargain-priced “3-D” CEF portfolio you can buy today. It yields 8% now and gives you the diversification you need to reduce your volatility—and collect your payouts in peace.

I know that preaching diversification at a time when bonds, stocks and everything else is down might sound a bit outdated, but over time, this time-tested strategy always pays off.… Read more

Dividends So Large, You’ll Think They’re ZIP Codes

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: July 16, 2022

Well, it took seven months. We finally have some serious dividends!

Today we’re going to highlight 53 of them that yield at least 14%. That is not a typo—these 53 dividend stocks actually pay between 14.1% and 44.6%.

Are they all buys? Of course not. But why not take our calculated contrarian chances with real income stocks, rather than wasting our time with mainstream ideas?

While we are considering payout plays like these, vanilla income investors are stuck with:

  • The S&P 500 yielded 1.3% to start the year. Now? About 1.7%.
  • REITs, which are better but still only yield 3.1% as a group.
Read more

This Recession-Resistant Healthcare Play Has Tripled Its Dividend

Jeff Reeves, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: July 15, 2022

Last week, I shared one of my top picks in this volatile market via automaker Stellantis (STLA). You can get all the details in my analysis, but the short version is that this stock is set up for big cost-savings after a recent merger, trades at P/E ratio of just 3X earnings, and delivers more than 5X the yield of the typical stock in the S&P 500 index at present.

This week, I want to share a bit more about the “MVP” philosophy behind this pick by highlighting another stock that is equally attractive.

MVP stands for three core factors that any income-oriented investor should explore before making an investment — Management, Valuation and Payouts.… Read more

This Fund Beats Inflation and Recession (and Yields 11%, Too)

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: July 14, 2022

If you’re like me, you’re getting sick of this tug-of-war between inflation and recession worries. One steals our purchasing power, while the other knocks down our portfolio values!

But I’ve got good news for you—two pieces of good news, actually.

  1. Our closed-end funds (CEFs) continue to deliver high, and reliable, income. The portfolio of my CEF Insider service boasts many funds yielding north of 8%, and the vast majority pay dividends monthly. Those high yields help us hedge against inflation, and the extra dividend cash (should we let it build up in our portfolios) naturally reduces our volatility.
  2. Recession fears are overblown, according to the latest data (which we’ll get to in a bit).
Read more

The Fastest (and Safest!) Way to Recoup ’22 Stock Losses

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: July 13, 2022

Some losses are just so bad it is dead money…

Look, I know several of you got into some sketchy stocks over the past couple of years. I’m not naming names but c’mon, as a dad of two young ones, I can tell when something is amiss.

Our safe dividend stocks have held up better than, well, just about anything else in this market. We’ve been cautious since late ’21, booking profits along the way. As the market topped, we sold early and often to raise cash.

So if you’re writing to me about dead money, let’s face it, you got into something bad.… Read more

This 2-Part Dividend Strategy MADE Money in ’08 (It’s Perfect for Today)

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: July 12, 2022

Today I’m going to show you a two-part dividend-growth strategy that actually made money for one group of investors in the disastrous year that was 2008. It’s an appropriate investing strategy for us to follow now, with the Federal Reserve likely to raise rates until we end up in a recession (assuming, of course, that we’re not in one already!)

Before we get into the specifics on this technique and an example stock, I want to level with you. I do believe that stocks are heading lower still before they ultimately head higher.

That said, if we look one year out from today, I like our chances.… Read more

The Crypto Crash Will Make This “Boring” 7.3% Dividend a Fan Favorite

Michael Foster, Investment Strategist
Updated: July 11, 2022

Crypto is a mess, and many (former) crypto fans are finally realizing that shares of companies that make goods and services people actually want—and pay dividends—are the place to be.

Of course, that’s no secret to those of us who know about closed-end funds (CEFs), many of which hold these companies and pay us rich dividends, often yielding north of 7%. To us, crypto is just the latest “investment” that held out the promise of building wealth faster than “boring” stocks ever could—and failed to deliver.

You might have even heard that crypto is a great inflation hedge. Anyone who bought Bitcoin based on that idea is now struggling with 71%+ inflation as their money literally disappears before their eyes!… Read more

Beat the Bear With 3 Tools: Dividends, Dividends and Dividends

Brett Owens, Chief Investment Strategist
Updated: July 9, 2022

It’s not easy to be upbeat in a bear market. This goes for people—and especially dividend stocks.

(And hey, who has time for feelings? We are looking to get paid without losing our entire portfolios. We’ll share emotions when the bear is done.)

For contrarians like you and me, it’s a time to be optimistic. We should be thinking about bargains, bargains and even more bargains.

Now halfway through the year, every major index is deep in the red. The S&P 500, Nasdaq and even the small-cap Russell 2000 are all in bear-market territory, while the Dow is down considerably too.… Read more