Updated on Febuaury 8th, 2025 by Felix Martinez
In the realm of dividend investing, the Dividend Aristocrats are the crème de la crème. The Dividend Aristocrats are a group of stocks in the S&P 500 Index with 25+ consecutive years of dividend increases.
Achieving Dividend Aristocrat status is a rare feat, with only 69 companies currently holding this distinction.
The Dividend Aristocrats list is highly selective. With that in mind, we’ve put together a downloadable list of all 69 Dividend Aristocrats, containing crucial metrics like dividend yields and price-to-earnings ratios.
You can download a free copy of the Dividend Aristocrats list by clicking on the link below:
Disclaimer: Sure Dividend is not affiliated with S&P Global in any way. S&P Global owns and maintains The Dividend Aristocrats Index. The information in this article and downloadable spreadsheet is based on Sure Dividend’s own review, summary, and analysis of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats ETF (NOBL) and other sources, and is meant to help individual investors better understand this ETF and the index upon which it is based. None of the information in this article or spreadsheet is official data from S&P Global. Consult S&P Global for official information.
While there are countless options for dividend stocks, the Dividend Aristocrats are in a league of their own. These companies have a track record of being financially stable and generating consistent cash flow, with the ability to grow their profits over time. This makes them resilient during economic downturns and able to consistently raise their dividends each year.
C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (CHRW) is a recent addition to the Index. The company recently announced its 26th consecutive annual dividend increase and currently offers a yield of 2.6%.
Despite the transportation industry being rather cyclical, C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s mission-critical logistics solutions have allowed it to generate resilient results over the years and thus afford consistent dividend increases. Therefore, C.H. Robinson could be a fitting stock for income-oriented investors.
Business Overview
C.H. Robinson Worldwide is a transportation and logistics giant that has been around since the early 1900s. Founded by Charles Henry Robinson, the company has grown to become a Fortune 500 provider of multimodal transportation services and third-party logistics.
CHRW offers a wide range of services to help its clients move their goods, from freight transportation and transportation management to brokerage and warehousing. Whether by truckload, air freight, intermodal, or ocean transportation, the company has the expertise to do the job.
On January 29th, 2025, C.H. Robinson Worldwide reported results for the fourth quarter for Fiscal Year 2024. The
company reported strong Q4 2024 financial performance, driven by disciplined execution and operational efficiencies. Gross profits rose 10.4% to $672.9 million, while income from operations surged 71.1% to $183.8 million. Adjusted operating margin increased 940 basis points to 26.8%, and EPS grew 369.2% to $1.22. Despite a slight 0.9% revenue decline to $4.2 billion, improved cost management and revenue optimization enhanced profitability.
For 2024, gross profits grew 5.8% to $2.7 billion, with income from operations up 30.0% to $669.1 million. Adjusted operating margin improved 440 basis points to 24.2%. Diluted EPS increased 41.9% to $3.86, and adjusted EPS rose 36.7% to $4.51. Cash flow from operations fell by $222.9 million to $509.1 million due to higher ocean freight rates. Productivity and cost efficiencies helped offset these challenges.
CEO Dave Bozeman emphasized the company’s resilience despite a prolonged freight recession. Investments in technology and pricing strategies expanded gross margins, while the Global Forwarding segment grew over 5% in ocean and air shipments. With disciplined execution and strategic focus, C.H. Robinson is positioned for continued growth in 2025 and beyond.
Source: Investor Presentation
Growth Prospects
C.H. Robinson has grown revenue by 3.1% annually over the past 10 years. Earnings per share have increased by 3.9% over the past five years. We expect annual earnings growth to be 4% for the next five years with the newly purchased Prime Distribution Services’ help.
C.H. Robinson adds great value to its customers through its efficient Freight & Logistics brokerage services, which are gradually capturing a larger chunk of the underlying U.S. freight market. In fact, as the industry has been shifting from asset-based trucking to brokers such as C.H. Robinson, brokerage penetration over the past two decades has nearly quadrupled.
Another growth driver for the company includes its digital transformation, which should help scale its operations further. This includes C.H. Robinson providing meaningful products, features, and insights to both sides of the two-sided freight marketplace, which translates to unique information advantages for its customers.
Finally, C.H. Robinson should continue to leverage its scale to capitalize on the growing freight market, expanding its unique global footprint. For fiscal 2025, we expect earnings-per-share of about $4.86, implying an increase of 8% from 2024.
Source: Investor Presentation
Competitive Advantages & Recession Performance
The integrated Freight & Logistics can be cyclical, resulting in fluctuating results for companies in the space as the demand for transportation can vary based on underlying economic conditions. That said, being the preferred partner in the industry, C.H. Robinson has managed to generate resilient results over the decades.
When it comes to competition, C.H. Robinson is in a league of its own. The company has built a network that is second to none thanks to its efficiency and effectiveness. But what really sets it apart is the massive barrier to entry that new or small competitors would face.
Building a network that can rival C.H. Robinson’s would take a huge amount of capital, and that’s something that not many companies have. In other words, C.H. Robinson has a wide economic moat that makes it hard for others to compete with them. This is why they are considered one of the best in the industry.
C.H. Robinson’s ability to continue growing its earnings even under adverse economic conditions was greatly illustrated during the Great Financial Crisis:
- 2007 earnings-per-share of $1.90
- 2008 earnings-per-share of $2.12 (11.8% decline)
- 2009 earnings-per-share of $2.15 (2.4% decline)
- 2010 earnings-per-share of $2.35 (9.4% increase)
As a matter of fact, it has an unbroken streak of profitability dating back to 1996 and has never once posted a loss in any quarter since. This is a remarkable achievement and a testament to the robustness of its business model.
Valuation & Expected Returns
We expect that C.H. Robinson is expected to earn $4.86 per share in the fiscal year 2025. The stock has a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.9. This is significantly above our fair value P/E estimate of 15.0. A declining price-to-earnings ratio could reduce annual returns by -4.0% per year over the next five years.
In addition, C.H. Robinson has a dividend yield of 2.6%, and the dividend payout appears to be well-covered by earnings. A breakdown of potential returns is as follows:
- 4.0% earnings-per-share growth
- 2.6% dividend yield
- -4.0% valuation tailwind
In total, we believe C.H. Robinson could produce negative annual returns of 2.6% over the next five years.
Final Thoughts
C.H. Robinson has managed to deliver an excellent track record of growth, consistent profitability, and rising dividends for many years, but the company is seeing declines coming off record results during the pandemic.
The stock has an attractive dividend yield above 2.6%, and a long history of annual dividend increases. That said, dividend growth is likely to slow, given the steep decline in the company’s earnings.
In addition, shares seem to be significantly overvalued based on the company’s reduced earnings power. We forecast that C.H. Robinson stock will generate low annual returns, making the stock a sell in our view.
The following articles contain stocks with very long dividend or corporate histories, ripe for selection for dividend growth investors:
- The High Yield Dividend Aristocrats List is comprised of the 20 Dividend Aristocrats with the highest current yields.
- The Dividend Achievers List is comprised of ~350 stocks with 10+ years of consecutive dividend increases.
- The High Yield Dividend Kings List is comprised of the 20 Dividend Kings with the highest current yields.
- The Blue Chip Stocks List: stocks that qualify as Dividend Achievers, Dividend Aristocrats, and/or Dividend Kings
- The High Dividend Stocks List: stocks that appeal to investors interested in the highest yields of 5% or more.
- The Monthly Dividend Stocks List: stocks that pay dividends every month, for 12 dividend payments per year.
- The Dividend Champions List: stocks that have increased their dividends for 25+ consecutive years.
Note: Not all Dividend Champions are Dividend Aristocrats because Dividend Aristocrats have additional requirements like being in The S&P 500.