MOS Crosses Above 4% Yield Territory

Looking at the universe of stocks we cover at Dividend Channel , in trading on Friday, shares of Mosaic Co (Symbol: MOS) were yielding above the 4% mark based on its quarterly dividend (annualized to $ 1.10), with the stock changing hands as low as $ 26.80 on the day. Dividends are particularly important for investors to consider, because historically speaking dividends have provided a considerable share of the stock market’s total return. To illustrate, suppose for example you purchased shares of the S&P 500 ETF ( SPY ) back on 12/31/1999 – you would have paid $ 146.88 per share. Fast forward to 12/31/2012 and each share was worth $ 142.41 on that date, a decrease of $ 4.67/share over all those years. But now consider that you collected a whopping $ 25.98 per share in dividends over the same period, for a positive total return of 23.36%. Even with dividends reinvested, that only amounts to an average annual total return of about 1.6%; so by comparison collecting a yield above 4% would appear considerably attractive if that yield is sustainable. Mosaic Co (Symbol: MOS) is an S&P 500 company, giving it special status as one of the large-cap companies making up the S&P 500 Index.

In general, dividend amounts are not always predictable and tend to follow the ups and downs of profitability at each company. In the case of Mosaic Co , looking at the history chart for MOS below can help in judging whether the most recent dividend is likely to continue, and in turn whether it is a reasonable expectation to expect a 4% annual yield. MOS makes up 9.43% of the First Trust Indxx Global Agriculture ETF (Symbol: FTAG)

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