Archive for July, 2007
Tuesday, July 31st, 2007
It’s not very often that I highlight other work on dividend investing, but given the choppy markets, I felt that it was necessary for you to hear some other voices on investing.
Here are some recent articles that you will enjoy.
Fat Pitch Financials asks value investors what their “Margin Of Safety” is?
A nice analysis of Bank Of America (BAC) has been put together over at Dividends Matter.
The Festival of Stocks is up at Market Prognosticator. The festival always has a lot of useful investing information and tips. Please take some time to check it out and read the posts with an open mind. I usually learn a little something each time I visit.
Fat Pitch Financials outlines some of the biggest losers of the recent stock market panic.
Charles Kirk shows us some great tools to help monitor news and fgure out what is happening with our stocks almost in real time. He also outlines the 3 Reasons Why Stocks Fall.
The Simple Dollar talks about tying investment risk to your goals and how it is never good to be shortsighted in choppy markets like these.
Investopedia chimes in with another list of why stocks slide. Check out these 5 reasons and see if you agree with them.
Find out which is better, Index funds or ETF’s!
Find out how to retire the easy way from the Fool.
The Dividend Guy shows us what the best Dividend Funds are holding.
I hope that you enjoy these articles and can learn something to apply to your own investing strategy.
Remember to formulate your own opinions and develop an investing strategy that suits your personality and lifestyle.
Posted in Finance Links | No Comments »
Sunday, July 29th, 2007
Provident Financial Services ( PFS) reported earnings per share of $0.22 for the quarter ended June 30, 2007, compared to $0.22, for the quarter ended June 30, 2006. Earnings per share were $0.41 for the six months ended June 30, 2007, compared to basic and diluted earnings per share of $0.44 and $0.43, respectively, for the six months ended June 30, 2006.
Net income for the three months ended June 30, 2007 totaled $13.6 million, an increase of $99,000, or 0.7%, compared to $13.5 million reported for the same period in 2006. Net income was $24.4 million for the six months ended June 30, 2007, a decrease of $2.9 million, or 10.6%, compared to $27.3 million for the same period in 2006.
Paul M. Pantozzi, Chairman and CEO, noted:
“In the past quarter we successfully integrated First Morris’ operations, increased our loan pipeline and maintained our net interest margin in line with the trailing quarter. These results fit well with our strategic priorities of profitable franchise expansion, commercial loan growth and prudent balance sheet management.” Pantozzi added, “In furtherance of our commitment to provide long-term stockholder value, I am pleased to report the Board’s declaration of a 10% increase in our quarterly cash dividend and authorization of our sixth stock repurchase program.”
Increase in Quarterly Dividend
The Company’s Board of Directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.11 per common share, an increase of 10.0% from the prior quarter’s cash dividend of $0.10 per share. The dividend is payable on August 31, 2007 to stockholders of record as of the close of business on August 15, 2007. Since declaring its first cash dividend in the second quarter of 2003, the Company has increased the quarterly cash dividend seven times for a total of 175%.
Stock Repurchase Program
The Company’s Board of Directors authorized the Company’s sixth stock repurchase program. Under the new authorization, the Company may repurchase 5% of the amount of shares of common stock currently outstanding, approximately 3.2 million shares. Repurchases will be made from time to time through open market purchases, unsolicited negotiated transactions, or in another manner deemed appropriate by management. The repurchase program will not be limited by a time period.
Provident has committed to creating shareholder value and has deployed its cash for the purpose of acquisitions of competitors and buying back stock.
In addition, Provident has shown the ability to increase its dividend over the short term. I normally like to see a longer term dividend record for stocks selected here at Dividend Money, but Provident has earned a spot on the watch list for the time being.
Posted in Investment News | No Comments »
Sunday, July 22nd, 2007
It is no secret that investing in Canadian Bank Stocks is a great way to get ever increasing dividends and solid earnings year after year.
The Canadian government makes it very difficult for foreign banks to do business in Canada, let alone compete with the established branch networks that exist already.
However, these Canadian government regulations are not the only reasons that Canadian Bank Stocks are a necessary part of a dividend growth portfolio.
Let’s take a quick look at some of the larger Canadian Bank Stocks and see what kind of value we can uncover:
- Royal Bank (RY)
- ROE – 24.49
- Dividend Yield – 3.0 %
- 5 Year Dividend Growth Rate – 15.52%
- Beta – 0.69
- Scotia Bank (BNS)
- ROE – 22.37
- Dividend Yield – 3.39%
- 5 Year Dividend Growth Rate – 19.33%
- Beta – 0.60
- Toronto Dominon (TD)
- ROE – 16.57
- Dividend Yield – 2.91%
- 5 Year Dividend Growth Rate – 10.31%
- Beta – 1.18
- Bank of Montreal (BMO)
- ROE – 14.63
- Dividend Yield – 3.62%
- 5 Year Dividend Growth Rate – 15.07%
- Beta – 0.48
- National Bank of Canada (NA.TO)
- ROE – 20.29
- Dividend Yield – 3.80%
- 5 Year Dividend Growth Rate – 19.04
- Beta – 0.56
As we can see, Canadian bank stocks offer a great opportunity to cash in on increasing dividends and provide a superior return on equity versus the industry as a whole.
These companies are constantly expanding into international markets in order to bolster revenues and diversify their lending portfolios.
Scotiabank (BNS), my favorite Canadian bank stock, has expanded very successfully through a methodical plan to increase operations in South America. While some other banks have focused on expansion into the crowded United States marketplace, Scotiabank has quietly set up successful branch networks in developing countries.
For those of you looking to expand your portfolio to include some additional financial stocks, have a look north of the border. You could be very surprised at what you might find!
The author is invested in all of the above mentioned companies.
Posted in Stock Studies | 4 Comments »
Thursday, July 12th, 2007
How can you make money by investing in the White House? Well, you really can’t invest directly in the President’s abode…but you can get darn close!
Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (WRE) is my favorite REIT and has become more of a value in recent weeks as the sector has taken a hit from investors.
Why Washington REIT?
Washington REIT is a diversified trust that invests in Real Estate in the Washington D.C area.
Let’s face it, we aren’t getting and less government employees, so residential property in the area should be a solid investment for the long term. In respect to office properties, the government occupies more office space in the Washington area than the vast majority of private companies.
In fact, As of December 31, 2006, the Company’s portfolio was 94% leased. Of that, Federal government tenants in aggregate accounted for approximately 2.3% of the Trust’s total revenue during 2006.
Some of Washington REIT’s Federal government tenants include the United States Department of Defense, the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Office of Personnel Management, Secret Service, Federal Aviation Administration and the National Institutes of Health.
That said, there probably isn’t too much to worry about in terms of tenants not paying the bills on time!
More Numbers
The trust’s P/E ratio (~38) is slightly higher than the industry average, but I believe that is warranted due to the quality of its earnings given all of Washington REIT’s government tenants.
However, the dividend yield of 5.10% is actually higher than the industry average of 4.26% which makes it even more attractive.
For those of you with a rather low risk tolerance or if you are looking for a defensive income producing holding for your portfolio, Washington REIT’s Beta is a mere 0.49, which should assist it in weathering a market downturn.
About Washington REIT (WRE)
Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (the Trust) is a self-administered, self-managed, equity real estate investment trust (REIT).
The Company’s business consists of the ownership, operation and development of real properties in the greater Washington/Baltimore region.
As of December 31, 2006, the Trust owned a diversified portfolio of 82 properties consisting of 24 office buildings, 13 medical office buildings, 14 retail centers, nine multi-family buildings and 22 industrial/flex properties. WRE also holds land for development.
With the recent drop in share prices across the industry, WRE looks like an attractive value and poses an opportunity to add a quality REIT to one’s portfolio.
The author does own shares of Washington REIT (WRE).Â
Posted in Stock Studies | 4 Comments »
