Dividend.com analyzes the search patterns of our visitors each week. By sharing these trends with our readers, we hope to provide insights into what the financial world is concerned about and how to position your portfolio.
Kinder Morgan has been the most popular ticker over the past two weeks after the energy infrastructure company reported strong quarterly results. Second in the list is Citigroup, which recently declared a regular dividend payment along with solid earnings. IBM is third as the company’s results suffered due to a strong dollar and Russian withdrawal. Last in the list is carmaker Ford, which hiked its dividend on Wednesday owing to an earnings beat.
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Kinder Morgan
Kinder Morgan (KMI) has taken the first position in the list, with the company’s ticker seeing its viewership rise 40% over the past fortnight.
Kinder Morgan, an energy infrastructure company, has reported strong financial results for the second quarter, with adjusted profits climbing more than 20% to $621 million compared to the same period last year. Although the company’s volume sales of crude oil, gasoline, and diesel were down compared to the same period last year, jet fuel volumes were up 19%. This was largely thanks to strong demand for air flights.
The company’s board of directors approved a dividend of $0.2775 per share, slightly up from $0.2700 in the previous quarter. This is the company’s first dividend increase in the past four quarters.
Amid energy security uncertainty stemming from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, energy infrastructure companies like Kinder Morgan are expected to benefit, given that countries put more emphasis on energy security. Kinder Morgan is an owner and developer of gas transportation systems, including liquefied gas. As Russia reduces gas supplies to Europe, U.S. liquefied gas is in high demand.
Kinder Morgan shares are up more than 7% over the past 30 days. Its annual $1.11 dividend yields an impressive 6.17% compared with an energy average of 4.24%.
Citigroup
Citigroup (C) has placed second in the list this week with an advance in viewership of 34%.
Citigroup reported solid results for the second quarter, with earnings per share of $2.19 outpacing estimates of around $1.68. Meanwhile, revenues of $19.64 billion were higher than the $18.22 billion expected by analysts. Earnings were lower than a year before, as the company set provisions for expected loan losses.
The bank’s strong results were in contrast to its U.S. peers. JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley posted results that disappointed analysts, while Wells Fargo delivered a mixed bag. Citigroup and JPMorgan both suspended share repurchases to set aside cash for potential loan losses.
Citigroup kept its dividend intact. On July 21, the bank declared a quarterly dividend of $0.51 per share, unchanged from the previous quarter.
Shares in Citigroup were up more than 7% over the past 30 days.
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IBM
IBM (IBM) has taken the third position in the list, seeing its viewership jump around 22%. The technology behemoth has seen its stock nosedive after it slightly decreased its estimates for free cash flows this year to about $10 billion. Shares in IBM have declined about 9% over the past 30 days, with most of the losses occurring after the company’s earnings report.
IBM said, however, that its results suffered due to a strong dollar, as around half of the company’s revenues are generated from overseas clients. The company noted that demand for its products remained strong. Sales in the high growth Red Hat division jumped by 12%, a notable slowdown from the typical 20% growth it generated since the company was acquired in 2019.
IBM’s growth during the quarter came from the infrastructure unit, as the company revealed a new mainframe system. Sales in the sector jumped 19% to $4.2 billion.
IBM pays an annual dividend of $6.60 per share, resulting in a yield of 5.11%.
Ford Motor
Ford Motor (F) is last in the list with an increase in viewership of just 9%.
Shares in Ford jumped Wednesday after the company raised its dividend to pre-pandemic levels thanks to solid results. Ford’s earnings per share rose to 68 cents from 12 cents in the same period last year, while revenue surged to $37.91 billion.
The company’s sales growth was underpinned by strong demand for Ford SUVs and crossovers.
Ford increased its quarterly dividend from 10 cents/share to 15 cents/share, resulting in a yield of about 4.5%.
Shares in Ford have declined about 39% for the year-to-date.
The Bottom Line
Kinder Morgan has benefitted strongly from high demand for liquefied gas. Citigroup has posted solid results, despite the overall U.S. banking sector delivering disappointing earnings. IBM guided for lower cash flow, partly as a result of a strong dollar. Ford has reported strong earnings thanks to high demand for its cars.
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