Dollar General, Williams-Sonoma, and 3 More Stocks Whose Dividends Are Going Up

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Dollar General
,

Williams-Sonoma
,
and

Equity Residential

were among the U.S. companies that said this week that they plan to boost their dividends.

Overall, though, it was a relatively light week for these announcements.

Discount retailer Dollar General (ticker: DG) declared a quarterly dividend of 55 cents a share, up 13 cents, or 31%, from 42 cents.

The stock, which yields 1%, has a one-year return of about 19% as of the close on March 17, dividends included, compared with about 13% for the

S&P 500.

Specialty retailer Williams-Sonoma (WSM) said it plans to boost its quarterly disbursement to 78 cents a share, up about 10% from 71 cents. The stock, which has a one-year return of about 20%, yields 1.9%.

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Several real estate investment trusts announced dividend increases this week.

Equity Residential (EQR) said it will raise its quarterly disbursement by 2 cents to 62.5 cents a share. That’s an increase of nearly 4%. The stock, which yields 2.7%, has a one-year return of about 25%.

The company owns and operates rental apartments in markets such as Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., and Southern California, among others.

Another REIT,

MGM Growth Properties

(MGP), declared a quarterly dividend of 53 cents a share, up about 1% from 52.5 cents. That equates to an annual dividend of $2.12 a share.

The company, based in Las Vegas, owns various casino properties there and elsewhere, including Mandalay Bay and The Mirage. MGM Growth Properties is being acquired by another REIT,

Vici Properties

(VICI) in a deal expected to close later this year.

MGM Growth Properties yields 5.7%, and it has a one-year return of about 20%.

UDR

(

UDR

), which owns and operates apartment communities, declared a quarterly payout of 38 cents a share, an increase of about 5% from 36.25 cents. The stock, which yields 2.6%, has a one-year return of about 31%.

Write to Lawrence C. Strauss at [email protected]