Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015

BALTIMORE (Stockpickr) --�Put down the 10-K filings and the stock screeners. It's time to take a break from the traditional methods of generating investment ideas. Instead, let the crowd do it for you.

>>5 Blue Chips Ready to Hike Their Dividends Again

From hedge funds to individual investors, scores of market participants are turning to social media to figure out which stocks are worth watching. It's a concept that's known as "crowdsourcing," and it uses the masses to identify emerging trends in the market.

Crowdsourcing has long been a popular tool for the advertising industry, but it also makes a lot of sense as an investment tool. After all, the market is completely driven by the supply and demand, so it can be valuable to see what names are trending among the crowd.

While some fund managers are already trying to leverage social media resources like Twitter to find algorithmic trading opportunities, for most investors, crowdsourcing works best as a starting point for investors who want a starting point in their analysis. Today, we'll leverage the power of the crowd to take a look at some of the most active stocks on the market today.

Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015: Pacific Gas & Electric Co.(PCG)

PG&E Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as a public utility company that engages in electricity and natural gas distribution primarily in northern and central California. The company also involves in the generation, procurement, transmission, and distribution of electricity; and procurement, transportation, storage, and distribution of natural gas. It owns and operates electricity generation facilities, transmission and distribution lines, and substations; and an integrated natural gas transportation, storage, and distribution system, as well as has underground natural gas storage fields in California. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, public street and highway lighting, and other electric utility customers. As of December 31, 2009, it served approximately 5.1 million electricity distribution customers and approximately 4.3 million natural gas distribution customers. The company also operated 18,650 circuit miles of intercon nected transmission lines and 141,213 circuit miles of distribution lines for electricity; and 42,142 miles of distribution pipelines, 6,438 miles of backbone and local transmission pipelines, and 3 storage facilities for natural gas. PG&E Corporation was founded in 1905 and is based in San Francisco, California.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Richard Stavros]

  On April 16, 2013, around 1:30 a.m., snipers opened fire for about 20 minutes on PG&E Corp’s (NYSE: PCG) Silicon Valley transmission substation, causing 17 transformers to overheat and crash.

• [By Richard Stavros]

  At present, when looking at the top five utilities with the largest capital expenditure programs, we found many firms were barely exceeding their cost of capital, while there were a few that weren’t. According to Bloomberg analytics, those that earned above their cost of capital were: Duke Energy Corp (NYSE: DUK) (1.32 percent), American Electric Power (1.12 percent), NextEra (0.64 percent) and Southern Company (2.94 percent), while those firms not earning their cost of capital were Dominion (-2.27 percent) and PG&E Corp (NYSE: PCG) (-0.36 percent).

• [By Jason Shubnell]

  Leading and Lagging Sectors
  Technology stocks gained Friday, with Parametric Sound (NASDAQ: PAMT) leading advancers after the company provided post merger update and outlook. Among the leading sector stocks, gains came from 21Vianet Group (NASDAQ: VNET), BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY), Canadian Solar (NASDAQ: CSIQ), and Veeco Instruments (NASDAQ: VECO).
  In trading on Friday, utilities shares rose by just 0.06 percent. Among the sector stocks, Exterran Partners LP (NASDAQ: EXLP) was down more than 4.8 percent, while PG&E (NYSE: PCG) tumbled around 3.75 percent.
  Top Headline
  BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) posted a narrower-than-expected fourth-quarter loss.
  BlackBerry posted a quarterly net loss of $423 million, or $0.80 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $98 million, or $0.19 per share. Its loss from continuing operations came in at $423 million, or $0.80 per share, compared to a year-ago profit of $94 million, or $0.18 per share. BlackBerry�� adjusted loss from continuing operations came in at $0.08 per share.
  Its revenue slipped 64% to $976 million. However, analysts were estimating a loss of $0.56 per share on revenue of $1.17 billion. BlackBerry sold around 3.4 million smartphones in the quarter.
  Equities Trading UP
  Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) shares shot up 3.64 percent to $27.44 after the company posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings.

Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015: Alliance Resource Partners L.P.(ARLP)

Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. engages in the production and marketing of coal for utilities and industrial users in the United States. It operates nine underground mining complexes, which offer low, medium, and high-sulfur coal. The company also leases land and operates a coal loading terminal on the Ohio River at Mt. Vernon, Indiana; and purchases and resells coal. In addition, the company provides mine products and services comprising design and installation of underground mine hoists for transporting employees and materials in and out of mines; design of systems for automating and controlling various aspects of industrial and mining environments; and design and sale of mine safety equipment, such as its miner and equipment tracking, and proximity detection systems. Further, it offers ash and scrubber sludge removal, coal yard maintenance, and arranging alternate transportation services. As of December 31, 2010, the company had approximately 697.4 million tons of coal reserves in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Alliance Resource Management GP, LLC serves as the general partner of Alliance Resource Partners, L.P. The company was founded in 1971 and is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Vinay Singh]

  Natural gas isn't as cheap as it was a year ago and that's leading to big changes in the energy market. That will be a good thing for Ultra Petroleum (UPL), Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.B) and Alliance Natural Resource Partners (ARLP).

Top 5 Consumer Service Companies To Own In Right Now: Consolidated Edison Company of New York Inc. (ED)

Consolidated Edison, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides electric, gas, and steam utility services in the United States. It provides electric service to approximately 3.3 million customers and gas service to approximately 1.1 million customers in New York City and Westchester County, as well as provides steam service to office buildings and apartment houses in parts of Manhattan. The company also provides electric service to approximately 0.3 million customers in southeastern New York and in adjacent areas of northern New Jersey, and northeastern Pennsylvania; and gas service to approximately 0.1 million customers in southeastern New York and adjacent areas of northeastern Pennsylvania. In addition, Consolidated Edison involves in the sale and related hedging of electricity to wholesale and retail customers; operation of generating plants; participation in other infrastructure projects; and provision of energy-efficiency services, including the design and installation of lighting retrofits, high-efficiency heating, ventilating and air conditioning equipment, and other energy saving technologies to government and commercial customers. It serves residential, industrial, and large commercial customers. The company was founded in 1884 and is based in New York, New York.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  Electric utilities have never been the most exciting opportunities in the stock market, but lately, one stock in the group has been underperforming the stock market as a whole, and performing particularly poorly relative to its peers to boot: Consolidated Edison (NYSE: ED  ) . Why?

• [By Justin Loiseau]

  Investors might invest in a good company with solid returns -- but is it the place where their hard-earned profits are best spent? Let's compare big dividend-dealing utilities FirstEnergy (NYSE: FE  ) and Consolidated Edison (NYSE: ED  ) , to see where we should stash our cash.

• [By Dividends4Life]

  This week a few companies answered the call and rewarded their shareholders with higher cash dividends:
  
  Consolidated Edison Inc. (ED) engages in regulated electric, gas, and steam delivery businesses. January 16th the company increased its quarterly dividend 2.4% to $0.63 per share. The dividend is payable March 15, 2014, to stockholders of record on February 12, 2014. The yield based on the new payout is 4.7%.
  
  Cousins Properties Incorporated (CUZ), a real estate investment trust (REIT), owns, develops, and manages real estate portfolio, as well as performs certain real estate-related services. January 16th the company increased its quarterly dividend 66.7% to $0.075 per share. The dividend is payable February 24, 2014, to stockholders of record on February 10, 2014. The yield based on the new payout is 2.8%.
  
  Wisconsin Energy Corporation (WEC) generates and distributes electric energy, as well as distributes natural gas. The company operates in two segments, Utility Energy and Non-Utility Energy. January 16th the company increased its quarterly dividend 2% to $0.3900 per share. The dividend is payable March 1, 2014, to stockholders of record on February 14, 2014. The yield based on the new payout is 3.8%.
  
  BlackRock Inc. (BLK) is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm primarily provides its services to institutional, intermediary, and individual investors. January 16th the company increased its quarterly dividend 14.9% to $1.93 per share. The dividend is payable March 24, 2014, to stockholders of record on March 7, 2014. The yield based on the new payout is 2.4%.
  
  ONEOK Inc. (OKE) operates as a diversified energy company in the United States. January 15th the company increased its quarterly dividend 5.3% to $0.40 per share. The dividend is payable February 18, 2014, to stockholders of record on February 10, 2014. The yield based on the new payout is 2.5%.
  
  Omega Healthcare Investors Inc. (OHI) is a real es

• [By Dividends4Life]

  Consolidated Edison Inc. (ED) is an electric and gas utility holding company that serves parts of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The company has paid a cash dividend to shareholders every year since 1885 and has increased its dividend payments for 40 consecutive years. Yield: 3.2%

Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015: Cinemark Holdings Inc(CNK)

Cinemark Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries engage in the motion picture exhibition business. As of June 30, 2011, it operated 436 theatres with 4,983 screens in 39 states of the United States, as well as in Brazil, Mexico, and 11 other Latin American countries. The company is headquartered in Plano, Texas.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rich Smith]

  As movie-theater operator Cinemark (NYSE: CNK  ) exits the Mexican market, another "gringo" is expanding to fill the gap -- from even farther north of the border.

Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015: 3M Company(MMM)

3M Company, together with subsidiaries, operates as a diversified technology company worldwide. The company?s Industrial and Transportation segment offers tapes, coated and non-woven abrasives, adhesives, specialty materials, filtration products, energy control products, closure systems for personal hygiene products, acoustic systems products, and components and products that are used in the manufacture, repair, and maintenance of automotive, marine, aircraft, and specialty vehicles. Its Health Care segment provides medical and surgical supplies, skin health and infection prevention products, inhalation and transdermal drug delivery systems, dental and orthodontic products, health information systems, and food safety products. The company?s Display and Graphics offers optical film solutions for LCD electronic displays; computer screen filters; reflective sheeting for transportation safety; commercial graphics sheeting and systems; and mobile interactive solutions, includin g mobile display technology, visual systems products, and computer privacy filters. The company?s Consumer and Office segment provides office supply products, stationery products, construction and home improvement products, home care products, protective material products, certain consumer retail personal safety products, and consumer health care products. Its Safety, Security and Protection Services segment offers personal protection products, safety and security products, cleaning and protection products for commercial establishments, track and trace solutions, and roofing granules for asphalt shingles. The company?s Electro and Communications segment provides packaging and interconnection devices; fluids that are used in the manufacture of computer chips, and for cooling electronics and lubricating computer hard disk drives; high-temperature and display tapes; insulating materials, including tapes and resins; and related items. The company was founded in 1902 and is based in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Tabitha Jean Naylor]

  3M Co.�(NYSE: MMM). A company with a household name, 3M has over 55,000 products in production and sells them in more than 200 countries around the world. Throughout its history, 3M has built a reputation for innovation, with about 6 percent of the company's revenue being spent on research and development. It has also paid a dividend annually for nearly 100 consecutive years, and more than half of those years have seen the dividend raised despite major economic setbacks.

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Barclays’ Scott Davis and team believe it might be, and for evidence they look at�3M (MMM), Emerson Electric (EMR), Rockwell Automation (ROK), and MSC Industrial Direct (MSM). They write:

• [By Seth Jayson]

  3M (NYSE: MMM  ) is expected to report Q1 earnings on April 25. Here's what Wall Street wants to see:

  The 10-second takeaway
  Comparing the upcoming quarter to the prior-year quarter, average analyst estimates predict 3M's revenues will grow 4.3% and EPS will grow 1.2%.

Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015: Vivo Participacoes S.A.(VIV)

Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo S.A.-TELESP provides fixed-line telecommunications services to residential and commercial customers in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Its services include local voice services, such as activation, monthly subscription, measured service, and public telephones; intraregional, interregional, and international long-distance voice services; data services comprising broadband services; pay TV services through direct to home satellite technology and land based wireless technology multichannel multipoint distribution service; and network services, such as interconnection and rental of facilities, as well as other services consisting of extended maintenance, caller identification, voice mail, cell phone blockers, computer support, and antivirus for Internet service subscribers. The company also offers multimedia communication services, such as audio, data, voice and other sounds, images, and texts and other information. In addition, it provides interc onnection services to cellular service providers and other fixed telecommunications companies through the use of its network. Further, the company offers telecommunications solutions and IT support designed to address the needs and requirements of companies operating various types of industries, including retail, manufacturing, services, financial institutions, and government. Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo S.A.-TELESP provides its products and services through person-to-person sales, telesales, indirect channels, Internet, and door-to-door sales. As of December 31, 2010, its telephone network included 11.3 million fixed lines in service, including residential, commercial, and public telephone lines; 3.3 million broadband clients; and 0.5 million pay TV clients. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Telecomunicacoes de Sao Paulo S.A.-TELESP is a subsidiary of Telefonica S.A.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Inyoung Hwang]

  Royal Mail (RMG) Group Ltd. jumped the most in a month after the U.K. postal service that listed its shares in October said first-half earnings almost doubled. Vivendi SA (VIV) advanced 1.9 percent after saying it will replace its chairman once it spins off its wireless business. Accor SA dropped 3.9 percent after saying it will separate the operation and ownership of hotels into two businesses.

Top Dividend Companies To Buy For 2015: UMH Properties Inc.(UMH)

UMH Properties, Inc. (UMH) is a real estate investment trust. The firm engages in the ownership and operation of manufactured home communities. It leases manufactured home spaces to private manufactured home owners, as well as leases homes to residents. The firm invests in the real estate markets of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Tennessee. In addition, it invests in debt and equity securities of REITs. United Mobile Homes was incorporated in 1968. The company was formerly known as United Mobile Homes, Inc. UMH Properties is based in Freehold, New Jersey.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By John Udovich]

  Trailer parks may have a bad reputation, but Yahoo! Finance�� Breakout segment was recently touting trailer parks as a hot new investment area���meaning its time for retail investors who don�� want to invest in physical parks to start taking a closer look at trailer park stocks Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc (NYSE: ELS), Sun Communities Inc (NYSE: SUI) and UMH Properties, Inc (NYSE: UMH). According to the segment, roughly 6% of Americans lived in trailer homes as of 2012 with the�supply of designated trailer parks being quite low because no one wants one in their backyard. Anthony Effinger, the author of another article about trailer parks for Bloomberg, was quoted as saying: