The Dynamic Dividend

Weekly Dow Jones Yield Rankings (1/22/12)

Below are the 30 components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, ranked by dividend yield as of Friday’s closing bell. I publish this list each weekend, along with a summary of changes that occurred during the week that just ended.

For a current look at the important dividend-related characteristics of the 30 blue chip stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (including yield), you can always access my Dow Jones Industrial Average Dividend Snapshot, which updates in real time.

The Dow rose 2.40% during the third week of 2012, pushing the average dividend yield among its components down from 2.76% at the end of the previous week to 2.70% today. Not a single blue chip adjusted its payout or saw its shares fall during the week. As a result, all 30 yields weakened.

AT&T (T) continues to feature the highest yield (5.77%) among Dow components. The rest of the top five also remains the same this week, with Verizon (VZ) continuing to hold down the #2 spot. Aside from the telecom rivals, big pharma names Merck (MRK) and Pfizer (PFE) are the only blue chips yielding 4% or better.

No significant climbs were made in the rankings this week, though Chevron (CVX) did move up one spot to join the top ten. Coca-Cola (KO), McDonald’s (MCD), and Caterpillar (CAT) all rose one position as well.

The biggest fall this week came from Microsoft (MSFT), which dropped two spots to #14 and now yields 2.69%. The software giant’s shares popped 5.17% during the week thanks to an impressive earnings release.

Bank of America (BAC) continues to be — by far — the lowest-yielding Dow component, and the gap between the banking giant and its fellow blue chips only widened as its shares jumped nearly 7% for a second consecutive week. BofA’s paltry quarterly payout of $0.01 per share now produces a yield of just 0.57%, making it the only Dow component with a sub-1% yield. Alcoa (AA) has the second-worst yield at 1.18%.