On January 24, the S&P Dow Jones Indices Canadian Index Operations announced eight additions to the S&P/TSX Canadian Dividend Aristocrats Index. In order to be included in this index, “a security must have increased ordinary cash dividends every year for at least five consecutive years, but can maintain the same dividend for a maximum of two consecutive years within that five-year period,” and must also be constituents of the S&P Canada BMI, be listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, and have a market cap of at least $300 million.
The eight additions were effective prior to the open of trading on February 1, so let’s take a quick look at each addition in alphabetical order.
Equitable Group Inc. (TSX: EQB)
Equitable Group is Canada’s ninth-largest independent Schedule I bank with over $24 billion in assets under management. It currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, representing $1.00 per share annually, which gives it a 1.5% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment for seven consecutive years, and its three hikes in 2017 have it on track for 2018 to mark the eighth consecutive year with an increase.
Onex Corporation (TSX: ONEX)
Onex is one of the world’s largest private equity firms with approximately $30 billion in assets under management. It currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.075 per share, representing $0.30 per share annually, giving it a 0.3% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment for five straight years, and its 9.1% hike in May 2017 has it positioned for 2018 to mark the sixth straight year with an increase.
Open Text Corp. (TSX: OTEX)(NASDAQ: OTEX)
Open Text is one of the world’s leading providers of enterprise information management. It currently pays a quarterly dividend of US$0.132 per share, representing US$0.528 per share annually, which gives it a 1.5% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment each of its last four fiscal years, and its 14.8% hike in May 2017 has it on track for fiscal 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.
Parkland Fuel Corp. (TSX: PKI)
Parkland Fuel is one of North America’s leading suppliers of fuel and petroleum products. It currently pays a monthly dividend of $0.0962 per share, representing $1.154 per share annually, which gives it a 4.1% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment for five consecutive years, and its 1.8% hike in March 2017 has it on pace for 2018 to mark the sixth consecutive year with an increase.
Premium Brands Holdings Corp. (TSX: PBH)
Premium Brands Holdings is one of North America’s leading producers, marketers, and distributors of branded specialty food products. It currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing $1.68 per share annually, which gives it a 1.6% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment for five consecutive years, and it traditionally announces its hikes in its fourth-quarter earnings releases, so investors should look for its next hike when it reports next month.
Secure Energy Services Inc. (TSX: SES)
Secure Energy Services is a leading energy infrastructure and services company with operations in Canada and the United States. It currently pays a monthly dividend of $0.0225 per share, representing $0.27 per share annually, which gives it a 3.3% yield. It has raised its dividend four times in the last five years, and its 5.9% hike that took effect in January has it on track for 2018 to mark the second consecutive year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment.
Toromont Industries Inc. (TSX: TIH)
Toromont Industries is one of Canada’s largest Caterpillar dealers, and it’s one of North America’s leading providers of industrial and recreational refrigeration systems. It currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, representing $0.76 per share annually, which gives it a 1.4% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment for 28 straight years, and it traditionally announces dividend hikes in its fourth-quarter earnings releases, so investors should look for its next hike when it reports in the next couple of days.
TransAlta Renewables Inc. (TSX: RNW)
TransAlta Renewables is one of the largest independent power producers in North America and Australia. It currently pays a monthly dividend of $0.07833 per share, representing $0.94 per share annually, which gives it a 7.9% yield. It has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last four years, and its 6.8% hike in July 2017 has it on track for 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.
