10 Greatest Dividend Champions You have By no means Heard Of

Printed on January tenth, 2025 by Bob Ciura

Income merchants are always on the hunt for high-quality dividend shares.

There are numerous strategies to measure high-quality shares. A way for merchants to hunt out good dividend shares is to focus on these with the longest histories of elevating dividends.

With this in ideas, we created a downloadable report of over 130 Dividend Champions, which have elevated their dividends for over 25 consecutive years.

You might receive your free copy of the Dividend Champions report, along with associated financial metrics like price-to-earnings ratios, dividend yields, and payout ratios, by clicking on the hyperlink beneath:

The Dividend Champions report consists of quite a lot of mega-cap shares which have monumental corporations, akin to Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Coca-Cola (KO).

Nonetheless there are moreover smaller, less-followed companies which have generated sturdy shareholder returns, and have elevated their dividends for over 25 years.

The subsequent report is comprised of 10 Dividend Champions you’ve under no circumstances heard of, ranked by 5-year anticipated annual returns, from lowest to highest.

Desk of Contents

You might instantly bounce to any explicit a part of the article by clicking on the hyperlinks beneath:

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Group Perception Bancorp Inc. (CTBI)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 8.0%

Group Perception Bancorp is a regional monetary establishment with 84 division areas in 35 counties in Kentucky, Tennessee and West
Virginia. It’s the second-largest monetary establishment holding agency in Kentucky. Group Perception Bancorp operates with a $5.2 billion stability sheet.

CTBI has raised its dividend for 44 consecutive years.

In mid-October, Group Perception Bancorp reported (10/16/24) financial outcomes for the third quarter of fiscal 2024. Its web curiosity income grew 9% over the prior 12 months’s quarter, as web curiosity margin improved from 3.27% to 3.39% and loans grew 9%.

Provisions for mortgage losses elevated from $1.8 million to $2.7 million. Non-interest income edged up 0.4% due to elevated deposit fees. Complete, earnings-per-share grew 7%, from $1.15 to $1.23, and exceeded the analyst’s consensus by $0.08.

Group Perception Bancorp is a conservatively managed monetary establishment, which has proved resilient to all sorts of downturns. The monetary establishment has grown its deposits 4% inside the ultimate 12 months.

It has moreover proved resilient to the downturn attributable to the affect of virtually 23-year extreme charges of curiosity on the net curiosity margin of most banks by way of extreme deposit costs.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on CTBI (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Matthews Worldwide (MATW)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 8.1%

Matthews Worldwide Firm affords mannequin choices, memorialization merchandise and industrial utilized sciences on a worldwide scale. The company’s three enterprise segments are diversified.

The SGK Mannequin Choices affords mannequin development corporations, printing gear, inventive design corporations, and embossing devices to the consumer-packaged gadgets and packaging industries.

The Memorialization part sells memorialization merchandise, caskets, and cremation gear to funeral dwelling industries. That’s the company’s largest part by revenue.

Provide: Investor Presentation

The Industrial utilized sciences part is smaller than the alternative two corporations and designs, manufactures and distributes marking, coding and industrial automation utilized sciences and choices.

Matthews Worldwide reported fourth quarter and FY 2024 outcomes on November twenty first, 2024. The company reported product sales of $447 million, a 7% decline as compared with the equivalent prior 12 months interval. The decrease was the outcomes of a 19% product sales decline in its Industrial Utilized sciences part.

Adjusted earnings had been $0.55 per share, a 41% decrease from $0.96 a 12 months previously. The company’s web debt leverage ratio rose from 3.3 one 12 months previously to 3.6. For FY 2024, Matthews’ adjusted EPS fell 25% from $2.88 to $2.17.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on MATW (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: John Wiley & Sons (WLY)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 9.5%

John Wiley & Sons is a publishing and evaluation agency whose operations are break up into three segments: Evaluation, Publishing, and Choices.

The company presents scientific, technical, medical and scholarly evaluation journals, reference books, databases, medical alternative help devices, laboratory manuals, scientific and coaching books, and test preparation corporations.

Its corporations moreover embody finding out, development and analysis corporations for corporations and professionals and on-line program administration corporations for higher coaching institutions.

John Wiley & Sons reported its second quarter (fiscal 2025) earnings results in December. The company launched that its revenues totaled $427 million by way of the quarter, which represents a decline of 13% versus the prior 12 months’s quarter, which was a further pronounced decline as compared with the sooner quarter.

Earnings-per-share obtained right here in at $0.97 for the quarter, which beat the consensus estimate, as analysts had predicted a smaller income for the quarter. Earnings-per-share had been up by a robust 36% as compared with the sooner 12 months’s interval.

John Wiley generated earnings-per-share of $2.78 all through fiscal 2024, and it’s anticipated that fiscal 2025 will most likely be significantly stronger.

For the current 12 months, administration forecasts earnings-per-share of $3.25 to $3.60, which could signify progress deep inside the double digits as compared with 2024.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on WLY (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Brady Corp. (BRC)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 10.3%

Brady Firm was based mostly in 1914, generates annual revenue of higher than $1.3 billion. It manufactures and markets specialty provides. Its merchandise embody absorbents, labels, pipes and valves, indicators, tags, tapes, and printers.

Provide: Investor Presentation

On September fifth, 2024, Brady Firm elevated its quarterly dividend 2.1% to $0.24, extending the company’s dividend progress streak to 39 consecutive years.

On November 18th, 2024, Brady Firm reported outcomes for the first quarter of fiscal 12 months 2025 for the interval ending October thirty first, 2024. For the quarter, revenue grew 13.6% to $377.1 million, which beat estimates by $11.2 million.

Adjusted earnings-per share of $1.12 in distinction favorably to $1.00 inside the prior 12 months and was $0.02 ahead of expectations.

Pure revenue grew 3.6% for the quarter with the Americas & Asia enhancing 5.1% and Europe & Australia inching higher by 0.7%.

Acquisitions enormously aided outcomes whereas foreign exchange change and divestitures had been slight headwind by way of the interval. Gross income margin contracted 140 basis elements to 50.3% for the interval.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on BRC (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Westamerica Bancorporation (WABC)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 10.3%

Westamerica Bancorporation is the holding agency for Westamerica Monetary establishment. Westamerica Bancorporation is a regional neighborhood monetary establishment with 79 branches in Northern and Central California. The company can trace its origins once more to 1884.

Westamerica Bancorporation presents consumers entry to monetary financial savings, checking and money market accounts. The company’s mortgage portfolio consists of every enterprise and residential precise property loans, along with constructing loans.

Westamerica Bancorporation is the seventh largest monetary establishment headquartered in California. It has annual revenues of about $325 million.

On October seventeenth, 2024 Westamerica Bancorporation reported third quarter outcomes for the interval ending September thirtieth, 2024. For the quarter, revenue decreased 10.8% to $74.4 million, nevertheless this was $3.6 million higher than anticipated. GAAP earnings-per-share of $1.31 in distinction unfavorably to $1.33 inside the prior 12 months, nevertheless this was $0.07 above estimates.

Full loans fell 8% to $831.4 million million as enterprise loans had been lower by 10.1% and consumer loans fell 22.1%. Enterprise precise property loans, which make up higher than half of the entire mortgage portfolio, had been unchanged. As of the tip of the quarter, nonperforming loans decreased 25.8% to $919,000 year-over-year.

As with the second quarter, this period had no provisions for credit score rating losses, as compared with $400,000 inside the third quarter of 2024.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on WABC (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: New Jersey Belongings (NJR)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 11.7%

New Jersey Belongings affords pure gasoline and clear vitality corporations, transportation, distribution, asset administration and residential corporations by its 5 predominant subsidiaries. The company owns every regulated and non-regulated operations.

NJR’s principal subsidiary, New Jersey Pure Gasoline (NJNG), owns and operates pure gasoline transportation and distribution infrastructure serving over half 1,000,000 purchasers. NJR Clear Energy Ventures (CEV) invests in and operates picture voltaic initiatives, to supply purchasers with low-carbon choices.

NRJ Energy Suppliers manages a portfolio of pure gasoline transportation and storage belongings, along with affords bodily pure gasoline corporations to purchasers in North America. The midstream subsidiary owns and invests in quite a lot of large midstream gasoline initiatives.

Lastly, the home corporations enterprise affords heating, central air conditioning, water heaters, standby mills, and picture voltaic merchandise to residential homes.

Provide: Investor Presentation

New Jersey Belongings was based mostly in 1952 and has paid a quarterly dividend since. The company has elevated its annual dividend for 28 consecutive years.

New Jersey Belongings reported fourth quarter 2024 outcomes on November twenty fifth, 2024, for the interval ending September thirtieth, 2024. Fourth quarter web income of $91.1 million in distinction favorably to the prior 12 months quarter’s $37.0 million.

Consolidated web financial earnings (NFE) amounted to $88.7 million, as compared with web financial earnings (NFE) of $29.6 million in This autumn 2023 and NFE per share of $0.89 as compared with $0.30 per share one 12 months previously.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on NJR (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Donaldson Co. (DCI)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 11.8%

Donaldson has been creating filtration choices for a wide array of capabilities since 1915. Its product sales embody filters in quite a few engine and industrial capabilities as core lessons. The company is anticipated to provide about $3.7 billion in revenue this 12 months.

Donaldson posted first quarter earnings on December third, 2024, and outcomes had been greater than anticipated. Adjusted earnings-per-share obtained right here to 83 cents, which was a penny ahead of estimates.

Earnings was up 6.4% year-over-year to $900 million, beating estimates by almost $8 million.

Provide: Investor Presentation

Gross margin was 35.5% of revenue, off 10 basis elements year-over-year on account of higher costs, notably for precise property and distribution. Working payments had been 20.7% of revenue, down 10 basis elements from the prior 12 months.

Adjusted working income was 14.0% of revenue, an increase of 20 basis elements from the prior 12 months. The company reaffirmed its steering for quite a lot of adjusted earnings-per-share being $3.56 to $3.72.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on DCI (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Andersons Inc. (ANDE)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 12.9%

The Andersons is an agriculture agency that conducts enterprise in North America. It operates by the following segments: Commerce, Renewables, and Nutrient & Industrial (beforehand Plant Nutrient).

The Commerce part consists of commodity merchandising and the operation of terminal grain elevator companies. The Commerce part contributed over 70% of the company’s revenue in 2023. The Renewables part produces, purchases, and sells ethanol and co merchandise.

The Nutrient & Industrial part manufactures, and distributes agricultural inputs, main nutritional vitamins, and specialty fertilizers, to sellers and farmers, along with turf care and corncob-based merchandise.

Provide: Investor Presentation

On November 4th, 2024, The Andersons launched its third quarter outcomes for the interval ending September thirtieth, 2024. For the quarter, the company reported revenue of $2.62 billion, a decrease from the $3.64 billion reported within the equivalent quarter of the sooner 12 months.

The revenue decline continued to reflect weaker commodity prices and basic market sluggishness, which impacted the company’s shopping for and promoting and merchandising actions.

Web income for the quarter was $27 million, or $0.80 per diluted share, up from $10 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, inside the earlier 12 months’s third quarter.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on ANDE (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Monetary establishment OZK (OZK)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 14.3%

Monetary establishment OZK, beforehand Monetary establishment of the Ozarks, is a regional monetary establishment that offers corporations akin to checking, enterprise banking, enterprise loans and mortgages to its purchasers in Arkansas, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Alabama, South Carolina, New York and California.

Provide: Investor Presentation

On October 1st, 2024, Monetary establishment OZK launched a $0.41 quarterly dividend, representing a 2.5% elevate over the previous quarter’s price and a ten.8% elevate year-over-year. This marks the company’s 57th consecutive quarter of elevating its dividend.

In mid-October, Monetary establishment OZK reported (10/17/24) outcomes for the third quarter of 2024. Full loans and deposits grew 15% and 20%, respectively, over ultimate 12 months’s quarter.

Web curiosity income grew 6% over the prior 12 months’s quarter, no matter higher deposit costs. Earnings-per-share grew 4%, from $1.49 to a model new all-time extreme of $1.55, and exceeded the analysts’ consensus by $0.01.

Monetary establishment OZK has exceeded the analysts’ consensus in 16 of the ultimate 18 quarters. Monetary establishment OZK has posted report earnings-per-share and report web curiosity income for 8 and 9 consecutive quarters, respectively.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on OZK (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Dividend Champion You’ve Not at all Heard Of: Polaris Inc. (PII)

• 5-year anticipated returns: 14.6%

Polaris designs, engineers, and manufactures snowmobiles, all-terrain autos (ATVs) and bikes. In addition to, related gear and substitute elements are purchased with these autos by sellers positioned all by way of the U.S.

The company operates beneath 30+ producers along with Polaris, Ranger, RZR, Sportsman, Indian Bike, Slingshot and Transamerican Auto Parts. The worldwide powersports maker, serving over 100 nations, generated $8.9 billion in product sales in 2023.

On February 1st, 2024, Polaris raised its quarterly dividend 1.5% to $0.66.

On October twenty second, 2024, Polaris reported third quarter outcomes for the interval ending September thirtieth, 2024. For the quarter, revenue decreased 23.6% to $1.72 billion, which missed estimates by $50 million.

Provide: Investor Presentation

Adjusted earnings-per-share of $0.73 in distinction very unfavorably to $2.72 inside the prior 12 months and was $0.18 decrease than anticipated.

For the quarter, Marine product sales had been down 36%, On-Avenue fell 13%, and Off-Avenue, the most important a part of the company, declined 24%. Decreases in all three corporations had been largely on account of lower volumes.

Off-Avenue was negatively impacted by higher promotional spend and product mix. On-Avenue and Marine every suffered from weaker product mix. Gross margin contracted 204 basis elements to twenty.6%.

Click on on proper right here to acquire our latest Sure Analysis report on PII (preview of net web page 1 of three confirmed beneath):

Additional Finding out

The Dividend Champions report shouldn’t be the one strategy to shortly show display screen for shares that recurrently pay rising dividends.

• The Dividend Kings Guidelines is way more distinctive than the Dividend Aristocrats. It’s comprised of 54 shares with 50+ years of consecutive dividend will enhance.
• The Extreme Dividend Shares Guidelines: shares that attraction to merchants inside the highest yields of 5% or further.
• The Month-to-month Dividend Shares Guidelines: shares that pay dividends every month, for 12 dividend funds per 12 months.