Investors want dividend income, and most companies have been more than willing to deliver higher dividends to their shareholders. With nearly 2,900 companies having raised their dividends during 2012, most investors got to share in the strong corporate-earnings results that helped push the stock market so strongly last year.
Yet even as dividends have increased, companies haven’t necessarily been as forthcoming about giving you as much in quarterly payouts as you might deserve. With the average payout ratio of dividends to earnings at just 36%, far below its usual level of closer to 50%, there’s plenty of room for companies to be freer about sharing their wealth. Today, let’s take a look at five companies that are particularly closed-fisted about making dividend payments.
National-Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE:NOV), 8.4% payout ratio
Yet given how fast the company’s profits have grown, National-Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE:NOV)’s dividends haven’t keep up. Consider: Since 2010, Varco has seen its earnings jump 45%, with the company earning $5.86 per share over the past 12 months. Yet the company has only raised its annual dividend by a puny $0.08. Even if growth slows down or even stops in the near future, National-Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE:NOV) still has plenty of capacity to pay more than its 0.7% yield.
Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV), 5.2% payout ratio
No airline has been more consistently profitable over the years than Southwest. Even though its decision not to charge baggage fees has left Southwest as the odd player out in the industry, with its rivals adding billions to their bottom lines through fees, Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV) has nevertheless used its customer service advantage to keep itself in the black.
Where Southwest hasn’t soared is in paying dividends. Even though the company finally doubled its long-standing payout rate to a full $0.01 per share quarterly, that still equates to just a 0.3% yield. Admittedly, the airline industry is one where it’s important to have plenty of capital on hand, but Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE:LUV)’s strong track record suggests that it should be able to afford handing back more than just peanuts to shareholders.
CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF), 5.6% payout ratio
CF Industries has found itself in the right place at the right time, with its lucrative fertilizer business having soared in the wake of rising food prices and high demand from farmers seeking to improve yields. With holdings in both nitrogen-based and phosphate fertilizers, CF hasn’t suffered from a lack of income.
In that light, CF’s dividend yield of just 0.8% doesn’t make much sense. By contrast, MLP subsidiary Terra Nitrogen Company, L.P. (NYSE:TNH) pays a 6.6% yield, much of which flows back into CF’s coffers. With the company not having made a move on its payout since late 2011, it’s high time for CF to give shareholders another boost.
