Some stocks just are better to keep forever and are too good to let go. Good examples of these shares include Aflac, Chubb, and Caterpillar.
Aflac (NYSE: AFL): Top Dividend Aristocrat
Aflac features supplemental health and life insurance products, operating through 2 key segments, Aflac U.S. and Aflac Japan.
Aflac Japan offers medical, cancer, and income support along with whole and term life insurance plans and similar benefits. The U.S. segment of Aflac features a wide range of products, including critical care, short-term disability, accident, cancer, and term and life insurance policies.
Sales associates, individuals agencies, and brokers are some of the sales channels the company uses.
Aflac pays a dependable dividend of 2.4% and ranks among the coveted dividend aristocrats list. To qualify as a dividend aristocrat, a company must have increased its dividend for 25 consecutive years.
When you look back over time and see the major crashes that have occurred as well as the economic booms and busts over the past quarter century, buying into a company that has survived the volatile swings and continued to increase its dividend each year provides confidence of its stability over the next quarter century.
Chubb Is A Global Leader With Diversified Revenue
Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, Chubb was incorporated in 1985, known at the time as Ace Limited. It changed its name to Chubb Limited in 2016.
The company features insurance and reinsurance products globally. Chubb’s North America Commercial P&C insurance division offers a whole array of insurance policies, including casualty, commercial property, workers’ compensation, risk management, marine, construction, medical, accident, and health coverage.
Group accident and health insurance are also featured and offered to middle market, large, and small businesses. In the North America Personal P&C insurance segment, high net worth and affluent investors can choose from homeowner’s, auto, and collector auto insurance policies.
Other products featured in this segment include coverage for valuable and high-ticket items, excess liability insurance, travel insurance, and recreational and marine protection.
The company also features insurance products that fall under its agricultural insurance segment, including crop-hail and multiple peril crop insurance coverage.
Just about every imaginable risk category is covered under Chubb’s line of products, as the company also covers specialty insurance needs such political and construction risks. The Chubb Tempest Re brand label offers both specialty and reinsurance coverage to property and casualty companies.
The company’s life insurance segment offers whole life, individual term life, group term life, and personal accident coverage, just to name a few.
Shareholders receive a historically reliable dividend of 1.91%. And like Aflac, Chubb has earned a place on the top dividend aristocrats list too.
Caterpillar Dividend Modest But Stable?
Caterpillar has a long history. It was founded in 1925 as the Caterpillar Tractor Company. Its home base is Deerfield, Illinois. The company makes and sells all types of equipment to the construction and mining industries. It also manufactures natural gas and diesel engines, including diesel-electric locomotives.
The company has certainly branched out from its agricultural roots, featuring a large line of equipment under its Construction Industries segment, including cold planers, asphalt pavers, pipelayers, tractor-type loaders, backhoes, telehandlers, and forestry and wheel excavators.
The company’s resource industries division offers products, such as hydraulic shovels, rotary drills, track-type tractors, and longwall miners along with select work tools.
Like Caterpillar’s other segments, the company’s energy and reciprocating segment, offers a diversity of products, including reciprocating engines for power generation and centrifugal gas compressors..
Caterpillar pays a dividend of 2.04%. The company’s projected dividend payout ratio for next year is almost 35%, proof that the company can sustain or increase its future dividends.
4 Rules of Thumb to Follow for Hold-on Stocks
When looking at a company’s financials, the following can be helpful guideposts:
- The earnings number should be 10% higher than the previous year.
- Sales should be higher than the prior year.
- The debt should be lower than the prior year and currently be less than the company’s assets. If the debt is not well covered by the company’s operating cash flow, the earnings forecast should still be bright for future profitability.
Why Aflac, Chubb, and Caterpillar Are All Good Picks
- Aflac, Chubb, and Caterpillar all represent profitable companies that sell goods and services that are perpetually in demand. Therefore, the share price tends to zig zag upwards on a regular basis.
- When you invest in stocks that represent human needs over wants, you can be more assured of long-term investing success.
- Keep a tight control over your investing budget. Doing so will decrease the need to invest aggressively with only a short-term focus and give you a clearer perspective about your long-term goals instead.
#1 Stock For The Next 7 Days
When Financhill publishes its #1 stock, listen up. After all, the #1 stock is the cream of the crop, even when markets crash.
Financhill just revealed its top stock for investors right now... so there's no better time to claim your slice of the pie.
See The #1 Stock Now >>The author has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Financhill has a disclosure policy. This post may contain affiliate links or links from our sponsors.