The State of Dividends, Q4 2026

The State of Dividends, Q4 2026. SmarterDividends tracked 3,050 listed dividend payers during the quarter.

155 raised a regular dividend and 4 cut one, 38.8 increases per cut; 4 companies initiated a dividend and 1 paid a special.

The median increase was 7.2% and the median cut 36.0%.

As of 2026-11-09, 41% of payers with a fair-value estimate trade below it, and 361 are both undervalued and graded 75 or higher for dividend safety.

75% of the period's cuts came from companies graded C or lower beforehand.

The balance shifted further toward increases even as regular-dividend action slowed from the previous quarter. Increases declined from 237 to 155, but cuts fell from 11 to 4, lifting increases per cut from 21.5 to 38.8. The sharper decline in cuts produced the more favorable mix.

November accounted for the heaviest activity, with 86 increases, 2 cuts, and 2 initiations. October opened with fewer increases than November, while December had the fewest, no initiations, and the quarter’s only special. Initiations were confined to the first two months.

UAN accounted for the deepest cut at 70.6%, followed by BXMT at 36.2%, CPB at 35.9%, and VNOM at 25.4%. UAN and BXMT were graded D beforehand, VNOM was graded C, and CPB was the sole cut carrying a B. Energy appears most often among the largest increases: EFXT led at 93.5%, alongside STNG, KNOP, and LPG. The table also shows that several large increases came without an established streak, including STNG, KNOP, LPG, and GGB.