4 Dividend Stock Picks for 2011, 1Q Update

By Dividend Growth Investor:For four straight years in a row, I participated in a friendly stock picking competition. The four stock picks that I selected have been chosen as if I was choosing long-term investments.

Dividend Growth Investor submits:I entered into a stock picking competition at the end of 2010, where I had to select four stocks that would do great in 2011. Instead, I selected four great dividend growth stocks, which have excellent long-term prospects. The companies all have strong brands, a diversified mix of products sold globally, and a tendency to raise dividends regularly out of their rising earnings.

Dividend Growth Investor submits:Philip Morris International Inc. (PM), through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products in markets outside of the United States.

Dividend Growth Investor submits:Back in 2009, I selected four high yield dividend stocks in order to participate in a stock picking competition. The companies selected have diversified income streams, high dividend yields and were characterized by stable revenues. Three of the companies had recession proof products or services.

Dobromir Stoyanov submits:Some of the best dividend stocks provide investors with the right to share ownership in some of the best managed companies in the world. Those companies are characterized by strong leadership as well as solid competitive advantages and products or services which have lasting pricing power.

By Dividend Growth Investor:Back in September 2011, I was invited to participate in the Dividend Growth Portfolio project.

By Dividend Growth Investor:Dividend stocks offer the best of both worlds – capital gains along with a recurring quarterly cash income stream. The positive about dividned stocks is most evident during turbulent market conditions, when investors suffer from volatility and lower stock prices. Most of the quality dividend stocks have hardly moved during the turmoil that started several months ago, caused by fears about a double dip, unemployment and defaults by sovereign countries.

Dobromir Stoyanov submits:When it comes to dividends, investors either immediately grasp the concept or dismiss it altogether. After all dividend payments are more stable than price returns.