Dividend Options Abound

Daily Stat | December 04, 2012 | Topics: Investing for Income 

403: S&P 500 companies paying dividends as of October 2012

With so many investment options, some may wonder what advantages dividend-paying stocks have over more traditional income sources. The fact is that yields offered by government and corporate bonds today are perhaps the most unappealing they have ever been. The 10-year Treasury has traded below 2% for most of 2012, and is not likely to trend much higher given the Fed's commitment to keep rates low well into 2015. As of October, 403 S&P 500 companies were paying dividends, and more than 50% of those had a yield higher than the 10-year Treasury. However, not all dividend-paying stocks are equal; make sure to talk to a financial professional before making investment decisions. There is no guarantee that companies will continue to pay dividends.

Source: BlackRock, November 2012

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