This fund tracking the FTSE 100 has raised its annual dividend by 11%.
One of the most popular funds tracking the FTSE 100, the iShares FTSE 100 (LSE: ISF) exchange-traded fund (ETF), announced its latest dividend today.
The payout confirmed aggregate dividends from Britain's 100 largest companies continue to advance following the widespread cuts seen during the banking crash. However, the current aggregate dividend from the FTSE 100 index remains a fraction below the level seen prior to the recession.
Today's 2.98p per share payout now means the iShares FTSE 100 ETF has declared dividends of 20.59p per share during the last twelve months -- up 11% on the preceding twelve months.
As the next table shows, that 20.59p figure is 4% below the iShares FTSE 100 ETF's all-time dividend peak, which was reached a few years ago:
| 12 months to February | iShares FTSE 100 dividend (p per share) |
|---|
| 2007 | 17.56 |
| 2008 | 19.43 |
| 2009 | 21.56 |
| 2010 | 16.07 |
| 2011 | 15.68 |
| 2012 | 18.55 |
| 2013 | 20.59 |
Source: iShares.com/Bloomberg.
Recent dividends from the iShares FTSE 100 may have been bolstered by good results from major blue-chip shares. Indeed, members of the FTSE 100 raising their payouts of late include ARM Holdings, with a 29% advance, Smith & Nephew, with a 50% dividend advance, and Randgold Resources, with a 25% advance.
The possibility of better returns
While index trackers such as the iShares FTSE 100 are a great way of capturing the long-term collective power of British companies and the stock market, there are always individual shares that have better dividend records -- and could deliver better returns -- than the wider index.
Right now, the iShares FTSE 100 trades around 627p and therefore presents today's buyers with a 3.3% yield -- a reasonable if not spectacular income.
However, this individual share alternative has a better dividend record than the FTSE 100 since 2007…
| 12 months to February | Dividend from Alternative (p per share) |
|---|
| 2007 | 26.80 |
| 2008 | 29.50 |
| 2009 | 33.94 |
| 2010 | 36.65 |
| 2011 | 37.74 |
| 2012 | 37.40 |
| 2013 | 39.84 |
…and at its current price of about 700p, this alternative share yields much more than the iShares FTSE 100 -- a mighty 5.7% in fact.
Indeed, one top analyst at the Motley Fool calculates the fair value of the alternative share could be 850p -- and has even declared the company to be his "Top Income Stock of 2013".
If you wish to know more about this 5.7% yielder, simply click here and enjoy a new Fool special report -- it's 100% free..
> Maynard does not own any share mentioned in this article.
