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A.O. Smith Corp: A Dividend Contender with 18 Consecutive Years of Dividend Increases
Since dividends are paid out of earnings, a clear perspective of a company’s historical earnings growth record is a vital component of a dividend investor’s prudent due diligence process. The following graph plots A.O. Smith Corp.’s earnings per share since 1998. A quick glance to the right of the graph shows that A.O. Smith Corp. has increased earnings at a compounded rate of 7.8% (see purple circle on graph) per annum.
Even though A.O. Smith Corp. has averaged 7.8% earnings growth, you can see that there have been several brief periods where earnings fell and then recovered. Therefore, the cyclical nature of this company’s operating results is an important piece of information for the dividend growth investor contemplating building a position in this dividend contender.
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