The Ten Most Traded Scandinavian Stocks

By David Hunkar: The Nordic countries of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden are somewhat insulated from the crises engulfing Europe. These countries are not members of the European Monetary Union (EMU) and hence do not have the Euro as their currency. Staying outside of the Eurozone the Nordics set their own economic policies according to their national priorities. These countries have many positive factors such as strong fiscal position, low to no public debts, low unemployment rates, stable currencies, etc.

By Kirk Lindstrom:On December 14, 2012, the NASDAQ OMX Group announced the results of its annual re-ranking of their NASDAQ 100 index. The NASDAQ 100 index was launched in January 1985 and is comprised of the 100 largest non-financial stocks listed on the NASDAQ.

By David Hunkar: When considering dividend-paying stocks, some investors tend to select stocks with high dividend yields rather than the long-term total return. However this is not a winning strategy. Instead of falling into the so-called "yield trap", investors are better off picking stocks based on total return over the long-term, according to a research report by Invesco published earlier this year. Click to enlarge

By David Hunkar: Foreign stocks have traditionally had higher dividend yields than U.S. stocks due to a variety of reasons. While U.S. firms prefer to retain excess earnings for future growth, companies in other countries tend to pay out a higher portion of earnings to investors in the form of dividends. In some countries such as Australia, favorable tax treatment of dividends also encourages firms to payout more.

By David Hunkar: The dividend yield on the S&P 500 is around a measly 2.0%. For investors looking to earn higher income from investing in equities, foreign stocks provide attractive investment opportunities. Generally, foreign stocks have had higher dividend yields when compared to U.S. stocks due to many reasons. The following chart shows that U.S. equities had a dividend yield of just 2% at the end of 2011 while global income stocks had yields of over 5%: Click to enlarge:

By David Hunkar: Global stocks fell heavily across the board yesterday. Panic selling in the markets usually presents buying opportunities. Investors looking to deploy capital during uncertain times can buy high-quality dividend-paying stocks at cheap prices. Some of the reasons for investing in dividend-paying stocks are listed below:

David Hunkar submits: British companies are projected to increase dividend payouts by 10% this year, according to a report by Capita Registrars Dividend Monitor, which expects overall dividend yield to be 4.4% in 2011.

David Hunkar submits: When picking dividend stocks, in addition to an attractive dividend yield, it is important to select stocks that have high annual dividend growth rate. These two factors will give a better picture about the stocks than going with just the yield alone. The following foreign stocks satisfy the two conditions:Complete Story »