Companies Set To Pay A Record $263 Billion In Dividends

Companies are on pace to pay a record $263 billion in dividends to shareholders over the next year, topping the $253 billion they were paying as of June 2008, S&P Capital IQ says. Dividend payments are back to record levels even though stock prices, as measured by the Standard & Poor's 500, are still more than 10% below the peak they hit in October 2007.

"We're seeing good dividend increases across the board," says Richard Helm of Cohen & Steers Dividend Value fund. "Companies are running very profitable and cash-rich right now." Dividend payments setting new highs shows improving:

Source: USA Today

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