Dividend Aristocrat

The few. The proud. The brave.

The term "dividend aristocrat" comes from your friends at S&P, and refers to companies who have a religion which does not worship Jesus, Allah, Moses, or the Buddha (or Tom Brady). Instead, it worships companies that have raised their dividends for at least 25 years. In order to be able to raise a dividend in good markets and bad, a company must have a spectacularly good market. Paying a dividend in really ugly markets hurts...a lot.

Because this religion requires such spartan adherence, only a few companies qualify to exist in the pantheon. Today, those include under 100 names...names like: 3M, Aflac, Abbott, A.O. Smith, Cardinal Health, Chevron, Clorox, Coca-Cola, Franklin Resources, Hormel, J&J, McDonald's, Pepsi, P&G, Sherwin-Williams, Target, and Walmart, among a few others.