Dividends always bring a smile to my face, and I am sure they do the same for you, too.
There is nothing so satisfying as to see your bank account boosted by the arrival of this flow of passive income.
It’s essential, however, to seek out businesses that can continue to raise their dividends over time.
By doing so, your dividends can help to beat inflation and ensure that your cash inflows grow steadily higher.
If you are looking for stocks that pay higher dividends, these four could be perfect candidates for your buy watchlist.
SATS Ltd (SGX: S58)
SATS is one of the world’s largest providers of air cargo handling services as well as a food caterer for many airlines.
Together with Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) which was acquired in 2023, SATS’ network now covers 215 stations in over 27 countries.
For the first half of fiscal 2025 (1H FY2025) ending 30 September 2024, SATS saw revenue rise 14.8% year on year to S$2.8 billion.
Operating profit soared more than threefold year on year to S$240.1 million.
Net profit came in at S$134.7 million, reversing the net loss of S$7.8 million back in 1H FY2024.
The ground handler also declared an interim dividend of S$0.015.
Free cash flow turned positive in 1H FY2025 at S$113.2 million, a healthy turnaround from the free cash outflow of S$20.7 million in the prior year.
Both cargo and aviation meal volumes also climbed 17.5% and 26.1% year on year, respectively, to 4.4 million tonnes and 32.3 million for 1H FY2025.
SATS expects this positive momentum to continue with demand for travel and cargo reaching its seasonal peak.
Should the food caterer do well for FY2025, it could raise its dividend above the S$0.015 final dividend that was paid out for FY2024.
Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (SGX: BS6)
Yangzijiang Shipbuilding, or YZJ, is one of China’s largest non-state-owned shipbuilding companies.
The blue-chip group owns four shipyards in Jiangsu province that can manufacture a broad range of vessels such as large containerships, bulk carriers, and LNG carriers.
The shipbuilder delivered a robust set of earnings for the first half of 2024 (1H 2024).
Its revenue rose 15.3% year on year to RMB 13 billion while gross profit soared 65% year on year to RMB 3.5 billion.
Net profit surged by 77.2% year on year to RMB 3.1 billion.
There are signs that YZJ can keep up the momentum.
For its third quarter of 2024 (3Q 2024) business update, the group reported a record order book of US$22.1 billion as of 7 November 2024.
Total orders clinched from 1 January to 7 November amounted to US$11.6 billion, nearly triple of the target of US$4.5 billion set by management.
During 4Q 2024, YZJ snagged shipbuilding contracts for 21 vessels, bringing its contracts secured up till 2 December 2024 to US$14.3 billion.
Last year, the group paid out a first and final dividend of S$0.05, unchanged from a year ago.
Should its stellar performance carry on for 2024, there is a good chance that YZJ will raise its final dividend.
Centurion Corporation (SGX: OU8)
Centurion owns and manages a portfolio of 34 accommodation assets totalling around 66,660 beds as of 30 September 2024.
These comprise purpose-built worker accommodation assets (PBWA) and purpose-built student accommodation assets (PBSA) across Singapore, Malaysia, the US, the UK, Australia, and China.
Like YZJ, Centurion also reported a sparkling set of earnings for 1H 2024.
Revenue rose 27% year on year to S$124.4 million while net profit climbed 47% year on year to S$48.5 million.
The accommodation asset operator increased its interim dividend by 50% year on year from S$0.01 to S$0.015.
There are healthy signs that Centurion could raise its final dividend higher than the S$0.015 paid out for 2023.
The group reported strong revenue growth of 25% year on year to S$186.5 million for the first nine months of 2024 (9M 2024).
It also expanded into China’s build-to-rent sector with two accommodation assets in the pipeline, and has a strong portfolio growth pipeline planned for 2025 and 2026.
Centurion will release its 2024 results on 26 February after the market closes.
StarHub Ltd (SGX: CC3)
StarHub is a telecommunication company (telco) that offers a wide range of services such as mobile, broadband, pay TV, and cybersecurity.
The telco reported a mixed set of results for 9M 2024 with total revenue dipping by 1.5% year on year to S$1.7 billion.
Net profit, however, improved by 9.5% year on year to S$123.7 million.
StarHub had already increased its interim dividend for 1H 2024 from S$0.025 to S$0.03 and is committed to paying “at least S$0.06” for 2024.
Should its earnings momentum continue, the group could pay out a final dividend higher than the S$0.042 that was paid for 2023.
StarHub is slated to announce its 2024 earnings in the morning of 21 February, before the market opens.
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Disclosure: Royston Yang does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned.
