3 Equities Boost Annual Dividends 15-Plus Consecutive Years

Three equities recently declared quarterly dividend boosts to continue a record of increasing annual payments to between 15 and 40 consecutive years.

In addition to the decades-long record of rising dividends, the current share prices of all three equities are between 9% and 42% higher than their respective 52-week lows. Their Dividend yields range from 2.4% to 3.6%.

SCANA Corporation (NYSE:SCG)

SCANA Corporation generates, distributes and sells electricity to retail and wholesale customers in South Carolina. The company owns nuclear, coal, hydro, natural gas and oil, and biomass/solar generating facilities. Additionally, SCG purchases, transports and sells natural gas and offers other energy-related services.

The company boosted its quarterly dividend 6.5% over the previous period’s payout. The annualized dividend payout of $2.45 for 2017 is equivalent to a 3.6% yield.

SCANA Corporation has been paying a dividend since 1946. The current record of consecutive annual dividend enhancements goes back to 2000. Over the last 17 years, the company grew its annual dividend payout by an average rate of 6.3%. Consequently, the projected annual payout for 2017 is almost three times higher than the annual distribution in 2000.

The share price fluctuated over the last 52 weeks between a $62.85 low on March 2, 2016, and a $76.41 high, which occurred on July 5, 2016. So far in 2017, the share price is down 5%. On February 24, 2017, the price closed at $68.54, which is 10% lower than the 52-week high from July 2016 and 9% higher than the low from one year ago.

WGL Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:WGL)

WGL Holdings, Inc. operates four business segments that provide energy and energy-related products and services in Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania and the District of Columbia. In addition to delivering gas and electricity to residential and commercial customers in the region, WGL Holdings owns and operates underground natural gas storage facilities, pipeline delivery facilities. Also, the company focuses on upgrading the mechanical, electrical and energy-related infrastructure of governmental and commercial facilities by implementing traditional and alternative energy technologies.

On February 1, 2017, the company declared a 4.6% quarterly dividend bump from $0.4875 to $0.51. The annualized payout of $2.04 converts to a 2.4% yield, which is in line with the 2.48% average yield for the utilities sector.

The company has been paying a dividend since it was established as the Washington Gas Light Company in 1848. The current streak of annual dividend boosts goes back to 1977. Over the last 20 years, WGL’s annual dividend rose at an average rate of 4.3% every year.

Since March 2016, the company’s share price rose 21%. After trading in a narrow price range through the end of July 2016, the share price lost 17% by mid-October. However, the price reversed course and gained 43% between the October 52-week low and the 52-week high of $83.79 on January, 12, 2017. Since the January 2017 high, the price pulled back slightly. As of closing on Feb. 24, the share price was less than 1% below the January price high.

Auburn National Bancorporation, Inc. (NASDAQ:AUBN)

Auburn National Bancorporation, Inc. is a holding company for AuburnBank that provides various banking products and services in East Alabama.

The current quarterly dividend is 2.2% higher than the previous period’s payout. The annualized $0.92 dividend yields 2.8%. The company has been paying a dividend since 1995 and boosting its dividend consecutively since 2002. Over those 15 years of consecutive dividend increases, the payout rose at an average of 5.7%.

The share price experienced very little volatility over the past year and rose 30.6% from $26.22 on March 1, 2016 to its 52-week high of $33.95 on February 7, 2017. Since that high, the price lost 2.8% and closed on February 24, 2017, at $33.00, which is 27% higher than the 52-week low from March 2016.

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