Analyzing the Dividend Growth of Duke Energy and Peers

The three largest US utilities have a substantial dividend-paying history. Duke Energy (DUK) has incessantly grown its dividends every quarter since 2008. Its one-year dividend growth rate is ~4%, while its five-year dividend growth is at 2.4% (compounded annually).

By comparison, Southern Company (SO) has paid continuous quarterly dividends for the past 68 years. For the past 20 years, SO’s dividends have risen by an average 3% annually.

Peer NextEra Energy’s (NEE) annual dividend growth has been over 11% for the past year and has been over 9.5% for the past five years.