Leadership Changes May Play Into This Company's Dividend Future

Hello and welcome to Dividend Brief, the 2 times weekly newsletter focused on dividend investing.

Today, we will look into Medtronic, Costco and Charles Schwab, highlight a few dividend stocks worth watching, as well as share companies that are about to pay a dividend in the next few days.

AI

The AI Energy Miracle

All the Energy You Need to Power Your Entire Life... Could Fit Inside This Single Soda Can.

Three Companies Set to See Enormous Profit Potential.

Details Here.

Healthcare

Medtronic Names Thierry Piéton as New Chief Financial Officer

Medtronic has announced the appointment of a new Chief Financial Officer, Thierry Piéton, who will take on the role in March 2025. Bringing a wealth of financial leadership experience, Piéton joins Medtronic following his tenure at Renault Group, where he led the company to record operating margins and improved cash flow through strategic portfolio management and innovative partnerships. His diverse career spans various industries, including healthcare, automotive, and manufacturing, providing him with a broad perspective on managing complex global financial operations.

In his new role, Piéton will oversee Medtronic’s global finance organization, including critical areas such as treasury, tax, corporate strategy, and business development. His leadership is expected to support the company's strategic goals by driving financial innovation, operational efficiency, and long-term value creation.

Medtronic also acknowledged the contributions of Gary Corona, who has been serving as interim CFO. Corona has played a pivotal role in achieving strong financial results over the past six months and will transition to a new leadership position within the company’s corporate finance team. The combination of seasoned leadership and financial expertise positions Medtronic to continue delivering on its growth and innovation objectives.

This leadership change reflects Medtronic's commitment to advancing its financial and strategic priorities.

MDT currently trades at $88 and pays a dividend of 70 cents per share, a yield of 3.18%.

Retail

Costco Employees Vote to Authorize Strike Ahead of Contract Deadline

A union representing thousands of Costco employees has taken a significant step toward a potential strike after members voted overwhelmingly to authorize the action. The Teamsters, which represents 18,000 workers at Costco locations nationwide, approved the strike vote with 85% of members in favor. The current contract between the union and the retailer is set to expire at the end of the month.

If an agreement isn’t reached, the strike could disrupt operations at Costco, which has built a reputation for treating its employees well and championing diversity and inclusion initiatives. In preparation, the union has held practice pickets in several locations and will continue negotiations through the final week before the contract expires.

The Teamsters have expressed frustration with Costco’s response to their proposals, describing the company’s counteroffer as unsatisfactory, especially in light of its financial success. The union claims that the current proposal fails to improve retirement benefits and doesn’t address workers’ needs appropriately.

With less than two weeks before the current contract ends, both sides are under pressure to reach a resolution to avoid a disruption that could impact Costco’s operations and public image.

COST currently trades at $943 and pays a dividend of $1.16 per share, a yield of 0.49%.

Technology

Elon’s New Crazy Invention Could Pay You $30k a Year

What Elon Musk is about to do next could be BIGGER than PayPal, Tesla, SpaceX, and Neuralink… COMBINED.

His next big idea could not only unleash $9 trillion in value…

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Finance

Schwab Surpasses Estimates with Strong Q4 Results and Record Inflows

Charles Schwab Corp. has surpassed analysts’ expectations with impressive fourth-quarter results, driven by strong growth in retail brokerage and record-breaking inflows. The company reported a 20% year-over-year revenue increase, reaching $5.3 billion, exceeding projections of $5.19 billion. Earnings per share also beat expectations, coming in at $1.01. Full-year revenue grew by 4%, exceeding the firm’s earlier guidance of 3% to 3.5%.

Schwab's strong performance was largely attributed to net inflows into managed investment solutions, a trend that contributed to the overall revenue surge. The company’s leadership is in transition, with Rick Wurster recently taking over as CEO and Mike Verdeschi joining as CFO. They are steering Schwab back to stability after the challenges faced during the 2023 regional banking turmoil.

As of now, Schwab’s total client assets have reached $10.1 trillion, slightly under analyst expectations of $10.17 trillion. Looking ahead, Schwab plans to expand its presence by opening more than a dozen new branches and relocating some of its existing locations to better align with customer migration trends. These efforts are aimed at boosting growth as Schwab continues to evolve in an ever-changing market.

SCHW currently trades at $76 and pays a dividend of 25 cents per share, a yield of 1.31%.

ED upped its dividend payout to 85 cents per share, an increase of 2.41%. Its new forward yield is 3.69%.

VLO raised its dividend payout to $1.13 per share, an increase of 5.6%. Its new forward yield is 3.24%.

BUSE increased its dividend payout to 25 cents per share, an increase of 4.2%. Its new forward yield is 4.2%.

CNXC decreased its dividend payout to 33 cents per share, a cut of 0.1%. Its new dividend yield is 2.5%.

ADX lowered its dividend payout to 47 cents per share, a cut of 76%. Its new dividend yield is 8.98%.

PCF dropped its dividend payout to 6 cents per share, a cut of 4.6%. Its new dividend yield is 10.68%.

Technology

The NEXT Trillion Dollar Company?

It just signed a deal to get its tech in Apple's iPhone until 2040!

Online commenters are debating if this brand-new company will be the 7th trillion dollar stock.

Details on the controversy here.

Everything Else

• Kodiak Gas Services achieves double-digit growth while offering an attractive 3.33% dividend for investors.

• Minerals Technologies maintains its shareholder value with a regular quarterly dividend announcement.

• Civista Bancshares announces its first-quarter dividend, emphasizing its commitment to shareholder returns.

• NRG Energy declares its quarterly dividend, continuing its focus on rewarding investors.