New Report: Total Return Investing: Dividends for an Uncertain World

NEW YORK, May 24, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Catherine Avery Investment Management (CAIM LLC) released a report today expounding the benefits of dividends, including how her firm utilizes a focused approach that makes the most of a secure total return investing strategy. This report can be downloaded from the CAIM website at www.caimllc.com.

"The primary purpose of this report is to provide valuable information to investors who are navigating in these uncertain times," explained Catherine Avery, CAIM founder and CEO. "The statistics we have gathered in this report reinforce our strong belief that overall in up and down markets, these have compelling benefits. Companies are always subject to their own individual risks, but these particular companies, which have geographic diversity, balance sheet strength, a history of long term earnings and dividend growth, and strong brands, are naturally hedged against risks."

Key Highlights from the Report:

- Dividends are a Total Return Product

The essence of dividend investing is the fact that dividend stocks are a "total return" product. When an investor buys a dividend paying stock, not only will he have the opportunity to benefit from the stock price performance, but he will also benefit from the yield provided by the dividend issued by the company.

- Dividends "Put Money in Thy Purse."

Historically more than half of the total returns investors received by investing in the S&P 500 have come from dividends. Since the 1930s, dividends have comprised 51.5% of the total returns received by investors in the best-known index. Dividends accounted for more than half of investors' total returns during five of the last eight (62.5%) decades, and since the index was actually down during the 1930s and 2000s, dividends were the only source of return during those years.

- Dividends Are En Vogue

As of the end of 2010, companies are holding $1.93 trillion in cash on their balance sheets, according to the Federal Reserve. These very same companies are returning cash to shareholders by increasing dividends at historic rates and are on track to issue more dividends this year than last. As of the end of the first quarter of 2011, dividend increases totaled $22.2 billion, compared to just $8.7 billion in the prior year. The total for the entirety of 2010 was $20.65 billion. Today is as good a time as ever to invest in dividend paying stocks.

- Fat Tails? Choose Fat Dividends

Since the financial crisis and the flash crash, investors have heightened sensitivity to abnormal and unforeseen risk ("tail risk") in the markets. Dividend stocks are a natural hedge against potential tail risk because in general companies that pay dividends have strong balance sheets and business longevity. Dividend yield only increases when stock prices tumble, creating excellent buying opportunities. In this report we outline how we choose our dividend portfolio based on the best companies, not the largest dividends, best positioned to withstand tail risk situations.

Catherine Maniscalco Avery

Catherine Maniscalco Avery is the CEO and Chief Strategist at CAIM LLC. In her more than 25 years as a portfolio manager -- investing in both domestic and international securities markets. On an individual basis, she has been personally responsible for portfolios totaling more than $750 million and as a member of a larger portfolio management team, she has shared responsibility for managing more than $14 billion on behalf of investors. After working at number of leading investment firms in the U.S., including Morgan Stanley and Shearson Lehman Hutton, she left in 2007 to found CAIM LLC to more specifically service the growing demographic of Women and Baby Boomers. With the polling company, inc./WomanTrend, CAIM jointly released the groundbreaking study entitled: "What Women Want: Understanding The Modern Female Investor which identified key themes impacting today's women investors. She is also a contributor to ThirdAge, the largest and longest established website for Baby Boomers. Catherine is widely regarded as an expert in Women and Baby Boomer investing speaking on these topics regularly and appearing in the media often in such publications as The New York Times, Financial Planning Magazine, CFA Magazine, Consumer's Digest, National Post of Canada, Fox Business.

CAIM LLC

CAIM LLC is an independent, owner-run investment management firm specializing in managing customized investment portfolios for women and baby boomers. The backbone of Catherine Avery Investment Management (CAIM) is our core investment philosophy: Take a long-term perspective, create well diversified investment portfolios, and employ a classic investment philosophy including low volatility dividend paying equities.

SOURCE Catherine Avery Investment Management