Clinton-based Connecticut Water Service Inc. said today it has landed on the Dividend Achievers Indices for its nearly 50-year string of consistent or increasing dividends.
Connecticut Water was added to the Dividend Achievers’ U.S. Broad, Nasdaq, and Select indexes on January 30 when Indxis Inc., which compiles the index, reconstituted its equity indexes.
Under Indxis’ guidelines, Dividend Achievers are companies that have increased annual regular dividends for at least the past 10 consecutive years and have met specific liquidity screening criteria, Connecticut Water said. Dividend Achievers also are typically companies with strong cash reserves, solid balance sheets and a proven record of consistent earnings growth.
Connecticut Water has paid dividends on its common stock each quarter since its founding in 1956 without interruption or reduction and has increased dividend payments for each of the last 39 years, said Eric W. Thornburg, president and CEO.
“Nearly two-thirds of our shareholders are people who rely on a consistent dividend to fund retirement, educate their children, or simply make ends meet, an increasing challenge in these unusual economic times,” Thornburg said.
In 2008, Connecticut Water’s total shareholder return, based on its rising stock price and higher dividend, was 3.7 percent, the CEO said. In comparison, 2008 returns for the S&P 500 and S&P 500 utilities index were negative 37 percent and negative 29 percent, he said.
