Verizon's CEO Calls Its 6.6% Dividend "Sacrosanct." How Safe Is It Really?

"Sacrosanct." That's the word that Daniel Schulman, CEO of Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ), used to describe his company's 6.6% dividend at its third-quarter earnings conference. Sure enough, the company has grown its payouts for 19 years running, a period that includes the bear market of 2022, the pandemic of early 2020, and the 2008-to-2009 financial crisis.But while the dividend increases came every year, they haven't been sizable. This year's hike of $0.0125 per share was just a 1.8% increase over last year, barely half the annual inflation rate of 3%. Since 2020, its dividend has grown by 12%, less than half the rate of inflation in that time frame. Zooming out, Verizon's dividend has doubled since 2000, which only modestly outpaces the 88% inflation seen this century.Image source: Getty Images.Continue readingWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei MotleyFool Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei MotleyFool