Where Dividend Growth Was Strongest in 2020 Ten times as many U.S. companies were raising or initiating dividends in the fourth quarter of 2020 compared to those cutting or suspending dividends.
Dividend growth accelerated in the fourth quarter of 2020. There were only 57 negative dividend actions cuts or suspensions taken by U.S. companies in the three months ended December 2020, a significant decrease from the 102 occurring a quarter earlier according to S&P Dow Jones Indices and 74 a year earlier. Meanwhile, there were 620 positive dividend actions increases or initiations in the fourth quarter, up from 309 in the prior period but down from the 686 a year ago. The positive/negative fourth quarter breadth improved to 10.9 (from 9.3 a year ago) the highest fourth-quarter level since 2014 (14.5). However, there is still room for improvement in 2021 for companies suspending dividends in the second quarter of 2020, as the U.S. economy likely recovers in 2021 and companies adju