What a difference a year makes. This time last year we were looking at big-name dividend cuts and very few increases. Last week’s 16 increases set the stage for this week’s flood of companies, large and small, raising cash dividends paid to their shareholders.

United Technologies Corp. is an aerospace-industrial conglomerate with a portfolio including Pratt & Whitney jet engines, Sikorsky helicopters, Otis elevators and Carrier air conditioners, among other products. Linked here is a detailed analysis and commentary.

As dividend growth investors we are looking for stocks can continue to raise their dividends indefinitely into the future. One metric that provides an indication of a dividend’s sustainability is its payout ratio.

There are certainly many ways to categorize the different styles of investing in dividend stocks, including yield, risk, growth, etc. Over the years, I have found that most dividend investing styles fall into one of the three major categories listed below:

I am a firm believer in keeping things simple. However, you can simplify things to the point they no longer have value. In my opinion, a lot of the commonly used financial metrics can be very misleading unless you understand what is behind them. Let’s take a closer look at Dividend Payout.

In everything we do, we always want to be the best or be associated with the best. You never hear fans yelling, ‘We’re number 2, we’re number 2′, while holding two fingers in the air.  The same is true when selecting dividend stocks.

I maintain an extensive database with a minimum of 10 years of information on each of the 110+ stocks that I track. This data is gathered from various sources deemed reliable.  Most data is generic and can be pulled from various sites. That is except some S&P risk and quality information (RQ).

Over time we tend grow fond of people we have a relationship with. Sometimes we grow to love them like a brother or sister; sometimes even more. In much the same way we can easily grow to love certain stocks, but this is not necessarily a good thing.

There are many ways to earn a good return in the market.  In addition to buy and hold, some have successfully used various forms of market timing including sector rotation, momentum investing, technical analysis, et. al.  Given a person’s unique makeup, not all strategies will work for everyone.

The buy-and-hold investment strategy has taken a lot of abuse since the market turned down.  But this isn’t the first time it has happened. Eventually, the market turns, the naysayers disappear and the buy-and-hold investors make a lot of money.