As Foolish investors know, dividend investing is one of the most effective ways to build wealth over the long term. With this in mind, let’s take a closer look at three dividend stocks with yields of 4-7% that are often overlooked by investors, but that represent attractive opportunities today.

Rogers Sugar Inc. (TSX:RSI)

Rogers Sugar is one of Canada’s leading producers of sugar and maple products. Its family of brands includes Rogers, Lantic, Highland Sugarworks, Decacer, and Great Northern.

Rogers pays a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, equating to $0.36 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 5.9% at the time of this writing. The sugar and maple products giant has paid quarterly dividends uninterrupted and without reduction since it converted from an income fund to a conventional corporation in January 2011, including one hike of 5.9% in 2012, which means it’s a very reliable dividend payer.

I think Rogers’s consistently strong growth of free cash flow (FCF), including its 18.3% increase to $17.36 million in the first quarter of 2018, and its conservative dividend-payout ratio, including just 54.8% of its FCF in the first quarter of 2018, will allow it to continue to provide its shareholders with a high and reliable dividend, or allow it to announce a slight hike in the very near future.

Domtar Corp. (TSX:UFS)(NYSE:UFS)

Domtar is one of the world’s leading providers of fibre-based products, including communication, specialty, and packaging papers, market pulp, and absorbent hygiene products. Its family of brands includes Domtar, Cougar, EarthChoice, Attends, Indasec, and Butterfly.

Domtar pays a quarterly dividend of US$0.435 per share, representing US$1.74 per share annually, which gives its NYSE-listed shares a yield of about 4.05% at the time of this writing. The company has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last seven years, and its 4.8% hike in February has it on track for 2018 to mark the eighth straight year with an increase.

I think Domtar’s strong growth of FCF, including its very impressive 126.3% increase to US$267 million in 2017, and its very conservative dividend-payout ratio, including a mere 39% of its FCF in 2017, will allow it to continue to provide its shareholders with dividend growth for many years to come.

Fiera Capital Corp. (TSX:FSZ)

Fiera Capital is the third-largest publicly traded asset manager in Canada with over $128 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2017.

Fiera pays a quarterly dividend of $0.19 per share, representing $0.76 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 7% at the time of this writing. The asset manager has raised its annual dividend payment for seven consecutive years, and its recent hikes, including its 5.6% hike last month, have it on pace for 2018 to mark the eighth consecutive year with an increase.

I think Fiera’s very strong cash-flow-generating ability, including its 60.9% increase in operating cash flow (OCF) to $92.52 million in 2017, and its sound dividend-payout ratio, including just 63% of its OCF in 2017, will allow it to continue to deliver dividend growth to its shareholders in 2019 and beyond.

The post 3 Under-the-Radar Dividend Stocks Yielding 4-7% appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Dividend stocks should be core holdings in every investor’s portfolio, because, as history shows, they outperform their non-dividend-paying counterparts over the long term. With this in mind, let’s take a look at three high-quality stocks with yields up to 9.6% that you could buy right now.

Crombie Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX:CRR.UN)

Crombie REIT is one of Canada’s largest owners and managers of retail real estate with a portfolio of 284 income-producing properties located across the country that total approximately 19 million square feet.

Crombie pays a monthly distribution of $0.07417 per unit, equating to $0.89 per unit annually, which gives it a yield of about 7.1% at the time of this writing. The real estate giant has paid monthly distributions uninterrupted and without reduction since April 2006, including one hike of 4.8% back in May 2008, which makes it one of the most reliable income providers in its industry.

I think Crombie’s very strong cash-flow-generating ability, including its 7.2% increase in adjusted cash flow from operations (ACFO) to $151.88 million in 2017, and its improved payout ratio, including 87.7% of its ACFO in 2017 compared with 88.7% in 2016, will allow it to continue to provide its unitholders with a reliable income stream going forward.

Power Corporation of Canada (TSX:POW)

Power Corporation is a diversified international management and holding company with ownership interests in companies in several industries, including financial services, renewable energy, and communications.

Power Corporation currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.3585 per share, representing $1.434 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 4.8% at the time of this writing. It has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last three years, and its 7% hike in May 2017 has it on track for 2018 to mark the fourth straight year with an increase.

I think Power Corporation’s very strong financial performance in 2017, including its 27.3% increase in adjusted net earnings to $3.36 per share, will allow it to announce another dividend hike when it reports its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings results next month, and I think it will continue to deliver dividend growth to its shareholders for many years to come.

Pattern Energy Group Inc. (TSX:PEG)(NASDAQ:PEGI)

Pattern Energy is one of the world’s largest independent power producers. It has a portfolio of 25 wind and solar power facilities, including one it has agreed to acquire, with a total owned interest of 2,942 megawatts in the United States, Canada, Japan, and Chile.

Pattern Energy pays a quarterly dividend of US$0.422 per share, representing US$1.69 per share on an annualized basis, which gives its NASDAQ-listed shares a yield of about 9.6% at the time of this writing. It has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last four years, and its recent hikes, including its 0.5% hike in November 2017, have it on pace for 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.

It’s important to note that Pattern Energy has a dividend-payout target of 80% of its cash available for distribution (CAFD), so I think its consistently strong CAFD growth, including its 9.6% increase to US$145.8 million in 2017 and its projected 3-24% increase in 2018, will allow it to continue to grow its dividend in 2019 and beyond.

The post 3 Stocks Yielding up to 9.6% to Buy and Hold appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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If you’re a dividend investor with cash on hand that you’re ready to put to work, then I’ve got three stocks that should be on your radar. Let’s take a closer look at each, so you can determine if you should invest in one of them today.

Rogers Communications Inc. (TSX:RCI.B)(NYSE:RCI)

Rogers Communications is Canada’s largest provider of wireless communications services, and it’s one of the country’s leading providers of cable television, high-speed internet, information technology, and telephony services to individuals and businesses.

Rogers pays a quarterly dividend of $0.48 per share, representing $1.92 per share on an annualized basis, which gives it a yield of about 3.2% at the time of this writing. The company has raised its dividend 11 times in the last 13 years, including a streak of 11 straight years from 2005 to 2015.

Rogers’s streak of annual dividend increases may have ended in 2015, but I think its strong growth of free cash flow (FCF), including its 2.4% growth to $1.75 billion in 2017 and its projected 3-5% growth in 2018, and its conservative dividend-payout ratio, including just 56.6% of its FCF in 2017, could allow it to start a new streak in the very near future.

Valener Inc. (TSX:VNR)

Valener is a public company that serves as an investment vehicle for Énergir, L.P. and Seigneurie de Beaupré Wind Farms. Énergir is the largest natural gas distributor in Québec and the sole natural gas distributor and the largest electricity distributor in Vermont, and Seigneurie de Beaupré Wind Farms is one of Canada’s largest wind power facilities.

Valener currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.29 per share, representing $1.16 per share on an annualized basis, which gives it a yield of about 5.6% at the time of this writing. The company has raised its annual dividend payment each of its last three fiscal years, and its 3.6% hike in August has it positioned for fiscal 2018 to mark the fourth straight year with an increase.

Foolish investors must also note that Valener has a target dividend-growth rate of 4% annually through fiscal 2022, and it has stated that this growth will be supported by Énergir’s “solid financial performance,” as well as increased distributions from the Seigneurie de Beaupré wind farms.

North West Company Inc. (TSX:NWC)

North West, through its subsidiaries, is one of the leading retailers of food and everyday products and services to rural communities and urban neighbourhood markets in Canada, Alaska, the South Pacific, and the Caribbean. It currently operates 239 stores under its many banners, which include Northern, Cost-U-Less, Giant Tiger, and RiteWay Food Markets.

North West currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.32 per share, equating to $1.28 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 4.7% at the time of this writing.

It’s important to note that fiscal 2017 marked the sixth consecutive year in which North West has raised its annual dividend payment, and I think its strong financial performance, including its 6.3% increase in net earnings to an adjusted $84.6 million and its 12.2% increase in operating cash flow to $141.42 million in 2017, will allow it to extend its streak by announcing a hike in its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings release in June.

The post 3 Stocks Yielding 3-6% to Buy in April appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Investing in dividend-growth stocks is one of the most powerful and time-proven strategies to build wealth. With this in mind, let’s take a look at three dividend aristocrats with yields of 4-7% that you could buy today.

CI Financial Corp. (TSX:CIX)

CI Financial is one of Canada’s leading wealth management and investment fund companies with approximately $140.9 billion in assets under management as of February 28, 2018.

CI Financial currently pays a monthly dividend of $0.1175 per share, equating to $1.41 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 5.2% at the time of this writing. The company has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last eight years, and its 2.2% hike in May 2017 has it on track for 2018 to mark the ninth consecutive year with an increase.

I think CI Financial’s very strong cash-flow-generating ability, including its 7.2% increase in free cash flow (FCF) to $648.4 million in 2017, and its conservative dividend-payout ratio, including just 56.8% of its FCF in 2017, will allow it to announce another dividend hike in its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings release on May 10.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (TSX:BIP.UN)(NYSE:BIP)

Brookfield is one of the world’s largest owners and operators of high-quality, long-life infrastructure assets, including rail tracks, ports, communications towers, electricity transmission lines, natural gas transmission lines, and storage facilities.

Brookfield currently pays a quarterly distribution of US$0.47 per unit, representing US$1.88 per unit annually, which gives its NYSE-listed shares a yield of about 4.5% at the time of this writing. The infrastructure giant has raised its annual distribution each of the last eight years, and its 8% hike in February has it on track for 2018 to mark the ninth consecutive year with an increase.

Foolish investors must also note that Brookfield has a long-term distribution-growth target of 5-9% annually, and I think its very strong financial performance, including its 14.3% increase in funds from operations (FFO) to US$3.11 per unit in 2017, and its sound payout ratio, including 67.9% of its FFO in 2017, will allow it to easily achieve this growth target into the 2020s.

Plaza Retail REIT (TSX:PLZ.UN)

Plaza Retail REIT is one of Canada’s largest owners and managers of retail real estate with a portfolio of 298 properties across the country that total approximately 7.83 million square feet of gross leasable area.

Plaza currently pays a monthly distribution of $0.0233 per unit, representing $0.28 per unit on an annualized basis, which gives it a yield of about 7% at the time of this writing. The REIT has raised its annual distribution for 14 straight years, and its 3.7% hike that took effect in January has it on track for 2018 to mark the 15th straight year with an increase; this will give Plaza the longest active streak for a public REIT in Canada once Choice Properties REIT closes its acquisition of the current leader, Canadian REIT, in the second quarter of 2018.

I think Plaza’s very strong financial performance, including its 9.1% increase in adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) to $0.325 per unit in 2017, and the consistent improvement in its payout ratio, including 83.1% of its AFFO in 2017 compared with 87.6% in 2016, will allow it to continue to be one of the REIT industry’s best sources of income and distribution growth going forward.

The post 3 Dividend Aristocrats to Buy in April and Hold for Years appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Manulife Financial Corp. (TSX:MFC)(NYSE:MFC)

Manulife is one of the world’s leading international financial services groups, providing financial advice, insurance, and wealth and asset management solutions to individuals, groups, and institutions around the globe. It operates as John Hancock in the United States and Manulife elsewhere.

Manulife pays a quarterly dividend of $0.22 per share, equal to $0.88 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 3.8% at the time of this writing. It has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last four years, and its 7.3% hike in February has it on track for 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.

I think Manulife’s growing profitability and its very strong cash-flow-generating ability, including its 13.3% increase in core earnings to $2.22 per diluted share and its 4.5% increase in operating cash flow to $17.79 billion in 2017, will allow its streak of annual dividend increases to continue in 2019 and beyond.

Canadian Apartment Properties REIT (TSX:CAR.UN)

Canadian Apartment Properties REIT (CAPREIT) is one of Canada’s largest residential landlords with ownership interests in 50,624 residential units, consisting of 44,168 residential suites and 6,456 land-lease sites located in and near major urban centres across the country.

CAPREIT pays a monthly distribution of $0.10667 per unit, representing $1.28 per unit annually, which gives it a yield of about 3.5% at the time of this writing. The residential REIT has raised its annual distribution each of the last six years, and its 2.4% hike in February 2017 has it positioned for 2018 to mark the seventh straight year with an increase.

It’s important to note that CAPREIT has a long-term target annual payout ratio of between 70% and 80% of its normalized funds from operations, so I think its consistently strong growth, including its 4% increase to $1.842 per unit in 2017, and the fact that its payout ratio currently sits at the low end of its target range, including 70.3% in 2017, will allow it to announce a slight hike to its distribution when it reports its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings results in May.

Suncor Energy Inc. (TSX:SU)(NYSE:SU)

Suncor is one of Canada’s leading integrated energy companies with operations that include oil sands development and upgrading, offshore oil and gas production, and petroleum refining.

Suncor pays a quarterly dividend of $0.36 per share, representing $1.44 per share on an annualized basis, which gives it a yield of about 3.3% at the time of this writing. The energy giant has raised its dividend each of the last 15 years, and its 12.5% hike in February has it on pace for 2018 to mark the 16th straight year with an increase.

I think Suncor’s very strong cash-flow-generating ability, despite the current commodity price environment, including its very impressive 47.8% increase in funds from operations to $5.50 per share in 2017, will allow its streak of annual dividend increases to continue for the foreseeable future, making it one of the energy sector’s best dividend-growth stocks.

The post 3 Excellent Dividend Stocks to Buy in April appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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March was highly active in terms of companies raising their dividends, and we’ve already taken a look back at eight small caps and five mid-caps that announced hikes during the month. Now, let’s take a quick look at four large-caps that raised their rates during the month.

Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD)(NYSE:TD)

TD is Canada’s second-largest bank by assets with approximately $1.26 trillion in total as of January 31, 2018. It provides a broad range of financial products and services to over 25 million customers around the world.

In its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings release on March 1, TD announced an 11.7% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.67 per share, representing $2.68 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 3.7% at the time of this writing.

TD was already on track for fiscal 2018 to mark the eighth straight year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, so this hike has it on track for fiscal 2019 to mark the ninth straight year with an increase.

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (TSX:CNQ)(NYSE:CNQ)

Canadian Natural Resources is one of the world’s leading producers of natural gas, light crude oil, heavy crude oil, bitumen, and synthetic crude oil with operations across western Canada, the U.K. portion of the North Sea, and Offshore Africa.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 1, Canadian Natural Resources announced a 21.8% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.335 per share, representing $1.34 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 3.4% at the time of this writing.

The oil and gas giant has raised its dividend each of the last 17 years, and these hikes puts it on track for 2018 to mark the 18th straight year with an increase. 

Power Financial Corp. (TSX:PWF)

Power Financial is one of the world’s largest diversified international management and holding companies with approximately $1.52 trillion in assets under administration as of December 31, 2017. Its primary holdings include a 67.7% ownership stake in Great-West Lifeco and a 61.5% ownership stake in IGM Financial.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 23, Power Financial announced a 5% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.433 per share, representing $1.732 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 5.4% at the time of this writing.

Power Financial has raised its dividend each of the last three years, and this hike has it on pace for 2018 to mark the fourth consecutive year with an increase.

Dollarama Inc. (TSX:DOL)

Dollarama is the largest owner and operator of dollar stores in Canada. As of January 28, 2018, it has 1,160 stores across all 10 provinces.

In its fiscal 2018 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 29, Dollarama announced a 9.1% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.12 per share, representing $0.48 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 0.3% at the time of this writing.

The retail giant has raised its annual dividend payment for six consecutive years, and this hike puts it on track for fiscal 2019 to mark the seventh consecutive year with an increase.

The post 4 Large Caps That Raised Their Dividends in March appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Buying and holding dividend-growth stocks is one of the most effective ways to build wealth over the long term. With this in mind, let’s take a look at three with yields up to 6.9% that you could buy today.

Restaurant Brands International Inc. (TSX:QSR)(NYSE:QSR)

Restaurant Brands International (RBI) is one of the world’s largest quick-service restaurant companies with 24,407 locations in 100 countries under its Burger King, Tim Hortons, and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen banners.

RBI currently pays a quarterly dividend of US$0.45 per share, representing US$1.80 per share on an annualized basis, which gives its NYSE-listed shares a yield of about 3.2% at the time of this writing. The restaurant giant has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last three years, and its 114.3% hike in February has it on track for 2018 to mark the fourth straight year with an increase.

I think RBI’s very strong earnings growth, including its 32.9% increase to an adjusted US$2.10 per diluted share in 2017, and its continued expansion that will drive future earnings growth, including its addition of 1,331 net new restaurants in 2017, will allow it to continue to deliver dividend growth to its shareholders for many years to come.

InterRent Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX:IIP.UN)

InterRent is one of the largest residential landlords in Ontario and Quebec with a portfolio of 8,660 residential suites in mid-sized population markets across the provinces.

InterRent currently pays a monthly distribution of $0.0225 per unit, representing $0.27 per unit annually, which gives it a yield of about 2.7% at the time of this writing. The REIT has raised its annual distribution for six consecutive years, and its 11.1% hike in November 2017 has it on track for 2018 to mark the seventh consecutive year with an increase.

I think InterRent’s consistently strong growth of adjusted funds from operations (AFFO), including its 11% increase to $0.374 per unit in 2017, its conservative payout ratio, including just 65.8% of its AFFO in 2017, and its growing portfolio, including its addition of 601 net new suites in 2017, will allow it to continue to provide its unitholders with a growing stream of monthly income going forward.

Capital Power Corp. (TSX:CPX)

Capital Power is one of North America’s largest independent power producers with approximately 4,500 megawatts of owned capacity at 24 facilities located across Canada and the United States.

Capital Power currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.4175 per share, representing $1.67 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 6.9% at the time of this writing. The power producer has raised its annual dividend payment each of the last four years, and its 7.1% hike in July 2017 has it on pace for 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.

Foolish investors must also note that Capital Power has a dividend-growth target of approximately 7% annually through 2020, and I think its consistently strong AFFO growth, including its 12.9% increase to $3.60 per share in 2017, will allow it to extend this target into the mid to late 2020s.

The post 3 Dividend-Growth Stocks to Buy and Hold appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Vermilion Energy Inc. (TSX:VET)(NYSE:VET)

Vermilion is one of the world’s largest producers of oil and natural gas with operations across North America, Europe, and Australia.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 1, Vermilion announced a 7% increase to its monthly dividend to $0.23 per share, representing $2.76 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 6.6% at the time of this writing.

It’s important to note that this was the fourth time the oil and gas giant has raised its dividend since 2003, with the last being a 7.5% hike in January 2014.

Parkland Fuel Corp. (TSX:PKI)

Parkland is Canada’s largest and one of North America’s fastest-growing independent marketers of fuel and petroleum products, and it’s Canada’s leading retailer of fuel by site count.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 2, Parkland announced a 1.7% increase to its monthly dividend to $0.09783 per share, representing $1.174 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 4.05% at the time of this writing.

Foolish investors should note that Parkland was already on pace for 2018 to mark the sixth consecutive year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, which led to it being added to the S&P/TSX Canadian Dividend Aristocrats Index in February, and the hike it just announced puts it on pace for 2019 to mark the seventh consecutive year with an increase.

Canadian Western Bank (TSX:CWB)

CWB is one of the largest financial institutions in Canada’s four western provinces with approximately $27.91 billion in assets as of January 31, 2018.

In its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings release on March 8, CWB announced a 4.2% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.25 per share, representing $1.00 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 3% at the time of this writing.

Investors should note that CWB was already on track for fiscal 2018 to mark the 26th straight year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, and this hike puts it on track for fiscal 2019 to mark the 27th straight year with an increase.

Stella-Jones Inc. (TSX:SJ)

Stella-Jones is one of North America’s leading producers and marketers of pressure-treated wood products, such as railway ties, utility poles, and lumber for residential use.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 14, Stella-Jones announced a 9.1% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.12 per share, representing $0.48 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 1.05% at the time of this writing.

Investors must note that the company has raised its dividend each of the last 13 years, and this hike puts it on pace for 2018 to mark the 14th consecutive year with an increase.

Premium Brands Holdings Corp. (TSX:PBH)

Premium Brands is one of the leading producers, marketers, and distributors of specialty food products in North America.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 15, Premium Brands announced a 13.1% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.475 per share, representing $1.90 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 1.6% at the time of this writing.

It’s important to note that Premium Brands has raised its dividend each of the last five years, which led to it being added to the S&P/TSX Canadian Dividend Aristocrats Index alongside Parkland Fuel Corp. in February, and the hike it just announced has it on pace for 2018 to mark the sixth straight year with an increase.

The post 5 Mid-Caps That Raised Their Dividends in March appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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If you’re interested in adding a dividend-growth stock to your portfolio in April, then you’ve come to the right place. Let’s take a quick look at three with yields of 3-6% that represent attractive opportunities today.

Innergex Renewable Energy Inc. (TSX:INE)

Innergex Renewable Energy is one of the world’s largest owners and operators of renewable power-generation facilities with a portfolio of 63 hydroelectric, wind, solar, and geothermal facilities in operation across Canada, France, and the United States.

Innergex currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.17 per share, equating to $0.68 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 5.2% at the time of this writing. The renewable energy giant has raised its annual dividend payment for four straight years, and its recent hikes have it on pace for 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.

I think Innergex’s very strong growth of free cash flow, including its 15.2% increase to $87.21 million in 2017, and the improvement in its dividend-payout ratio, including 82.1% of its free cash flow in 2017 compared with 90.5% in 2016, will allow it to continue to deliver dividend growth to its shareholders for many years to come.

CT Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX:CRT.UN)

CT is one of Canada’s largest owners and operators of commercial real estate with a portfolio of more than 325 income-producing properties totaling approximately 26 million square feet located across the country.

CT pays a monthly distribution of $0.06067 per unit, equating to $0.728 per unit annually, which gives it a yield of about 5.5% at the time of this writing. The REIT has raised its annual distribution each of the last four years, and its 4% hike that took effect in January has it on pace for 2018 to mark the fifth straight year with an increase.

I think CT’s consistently strong growth of adjusted fund from operations (AFFO), including its 6.6% increase to $0.919 per unit in 2017, and the ongoing improvement of its payout ratio, including 76.2% of its AFFO in 2017 compared with 78.9% in 2016, will allow it to continue to be one of REIT industry’s best sources of distribution growth.

Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY)(NYSE:RY)

RBC is the largest bank in Canada by assets with approximately $1.28 trillion in total as of January 31, 2018. It provides a wide range of financial products and services to over 16 million customers around the world.

RBC pays a quarterly dividend to $0.94 per share, equating to $3.76 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 3.8% at the time of this writing. The industry leader has raised its dividend each of its last seven fiscal years, and its recent hikes have it on track for fiscal 2018 to mark the eighth straight year with an increase.

Foolish investors must also note that RBC has a target dividend-payout range of 40-50% of its adjusted net earnings, so I think its continually strong growth, including its 10% year-over-year increase to $2.01 per share in the first quarter of fiscal 2018, will allow it to continue to be one of the best dividend-growth stocks in the financial sector.

The post 3 Dividend-Growth Stocks to Buy in April appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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Transcontinental Inc. (TSX:TCL.A)

Transcontinental is Canada’s largest printer, and it’s a key supplier of flexible packing in both Canada and the U.S.

In its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings release on March 1, Transcontinental announced a 5% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.21 per share, representing $0.84 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 3.3% at the time of this writing.

The company was already on pace for fiscal 2018 to mark the 17th consecutive year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, so this hike puts it on pace for fiscal 2019 to mark the 18th consecutive year with an increase.

Martinrea International Inc. (TSX:MRE)

Martinrea is one of the largest diversified automotive suppliers in the world.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 1, Martinrea announced a 50% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.045 per share, representing $0.18 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 1.2% at the time of this writing.

This marked the first time the automotive supplier had raised its dividend since it initiated its dividend in 2013.

Enercare Inc. (TSX:ECI)

Enercare is one of the largest home and commercial services and energy solutions companies in North America.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 6, Enercare announced a 4% increase to its monthly dividend to $0.0832 per share, representing $0.9984 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 5.65% at the time of this writing.

Enercare was already on track for 2018 to mark the eighth straight year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, so this hike puts it on track for 2019 to mark the ninth straight year with an increase.

Enghouse Systems Limited (TSX:ENGH)

Enghouse Systems is one of the world’s leading providers of enterprise software solutions.

In its fiscal 2018 first-quarter earnings release on March 8, Enghouse announced a 12.5% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.18 per share, representing $0.72 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 1.1% at the time of this writing.

The software provider was already on pace for fiscal 2018 to mark the 10th consecutive year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, so this hike puts it on pace for fiscal 2019 to mark the 11th consecutive year with an increase.

Cara Operations Ltd. (TSX:CARA)

Cara is one of Canada’s largest full-service restaurant companies.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 9, Cara announced a 5% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.1068 per share, representing $0.4272 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 1.5% at the time of this writing.

This marked the first time Cara had raised its dividend since it paid its first pro-rated quarterly dividend in August 2015 following its April 2015 initial public offering.

Cargojet Inc. (TSX:CJT)

Cargojet is the leading provider of time-sensitive overnight air cargo services in Canada.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 14, Cargojet announced a 10.1% increase to its quarterly dividend to $0.212 per share, representing $0.848 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 1.25% at the time of this writing.

This hike puts Cargojet on pace for 2018 to mark the third straight year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment.

Fiera Capital Corp. (TSX:FSZ)

Fiera Capital is Canada’s third-largest publicly traded asset manager.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 23, Fiera announced a 5.6% increase to its quarter dividend to $0.19 per share, representing $0.76 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 6.9% at the time of this writing.

The asset manager was already on track for 2018 to mark the eighth straight year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, so this hike puts it on track for 2019 to mark the ninth straight year with an increase.

Badger Daylighting Ltd. (TSX:BAD)

Badger Daylighting is North America’s leading provider of non-destructive hydrovac excavation services.

In its fiscal 2017 fourth-quarter and full-year earnings release on March 27, Badger announced an 18.4% increase to its monthly dividend to $0.045 per share, representing $0.54 per share annually, which gives it a yield of about 2.1% at the time of this writing.

Badger was already on track for 2018 to mark the third straight year in which it has raised its annual dividend payment, so this hike puts it on track for 2019 to mark the fourth straight year with an increase.

The post 8 Small Caps That Raised Their Dividends in March appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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