September rolls on, and this week, I'm featuring another nine dividend increases. The most prominent one this week is dividend king Altria! Despite what you may think of their products, they are extending their 54-year increase streak with another 4% increase for investors. Additionally, as we'll see below, Amphenol has a phenomenal increase (yes, it's legit). Finally, the overall group has an average increase of 11.7% and a median increase of 4.22%. This group is one scenario where a significant increase can skew the average while the median is significantly lower. Let's roll on and see if there are any interesting ideas here.

My investment strategy involves buying, holding, and adding to companies that meet two criteria: consistently increasing their dividends and beating an equivalent benchmark. The information in this article is generated for my investing needs, and I'm happy to share my findings with my Seeking Alpha audience. This list can help you make wise investment choices and create a successful long-term portfolio.

I mention it every week, but I use my own research and don't write just for pay or clicks. Unfortunately, many authors will cover a variety of stocks, even on the bull side, and never have a stake in them. Based on the research initiated here, I added Broadridge Financial Solutions (BR) to my dividend growth portfolio. A few weeks prior, I added Steris (STE) as well.

The following information is a result of merging two sources of data: the "U.S. Dividend Champions" spreadsheet from a particular website and upcoming dividend data from NASDAQ. This process combines data on companies with a consistent dividend growth history with future dividend payments. It's important to understand that all companies included in this list have consistently grown their dividends for at least five years.

Companies must have higher total yearly dividends to be included in this list. Therefore, a company may not increase its dividend every calendar year, but the total annual dividend can still grow.

The ex-dividend date is when you must own shares to qualify for an upcoming dividend or distribution. To be eligible, you must have bought the shares by the end of the preceding business day. For instance, if the ex-dividend date is Tuesday, you must have acquired the shares by the market close on Monday. If the ex-dividend date falls on a Monday (or a Tuesday following a holiday on Monday), you must have purchased the shares by the previous Friday.

Here are the definitions of the streak categories, as I'll use them throughout the piece.

The data is sorted by the ex-dividend date (ascending) and then by the streak (descending):

Streak: Years of dividend growth history are sourced from the U.S. Dividend Champions spreadsheet.

Forward Yield: The payout rate is calculated by dividing the new payout rate by the current share price.

Streak Category: This is the company's overall dividend history classification.

Here is a table that shows the new and old rates and the percentage increase. The table is sorted by ex-dividend day in ascending order and dividend streak in descending order.

Some different metrics related to these companies include yearly pricing action and the P/E ratio. The table is sorted the same way as the table above.

I've arranged the table in descending order so that investors can prioritize the current yield. As a bonus, the table also features some historical dividend growth rates. Moreover, I have incorporated the "Chowder Rule," which is the sum of the current yield and the five-year dividend growth rate.

My investment approach involves identifying stocks that consistently outperform the market while increasing dividend payouts. I use the Schwab U.S. Dividend Equity ETF (SCHD) as a benchmark to gauge performance. I use the "Cohen & Steers REIT & Preferred Income Fund" (RNP) for REITs. I prefer to invest in an ETF if a stock cannot outperform its benchmark. SCHD has a strong track record of exceptional performance, offers a higher yield than the S&P 500, and has consistently grown dividends. I've added many companies to my own portfolio based on this analysis (and further due diligence). I'll also make timely purchases of existing holdings as well.

The ten-year dividend growth rate is one of the four main factors in the index behind SCHD. It's an important factor in total return performance. Share prices follow strong dividend growth over long periods, and longer trends will drown out short-term movements. These are total return figures, which include reinvested dividends.

The chart contains SCHD plus the nine companies with the highest 10-year dividend growth rates. Because of the lack of 10-year data, VICI and RICK are being excluded. I may analyze them separately, but they won't be explicitly covered here.

This chart almost looks silly. Lam Research has knocked the cover off the ball over the past decade, giving investors over a 10-bagger for their investment.

Lam completely overshadows everyone else, including Amphenol, with its wonderful 418% total return! Additionally, Amphenol has a 50% upcoming dividend hike.

Overall, this has been a great group of performers. Continuing down the line, SYBT (275%), EFSC (241%), and FAF (218%) all beat SCHD (195%).

Unfortunately, our dividend king Altria, has significantly lagged with a total return of 130%. JJSF brought up the rear of the group with a mere 98% total return.

As an investor, I have high standards for the individual holdings in my portfolio. It's not just about beating a certain benchmark by a small margin; I look for companies with a proven track record of exceptional past performance. I want to analyze their historical data meticulously to assess the likelihood of such performance continuing.

The only two on the list I am interested in are LRCX and APH. I don't own either of them, but simply based on their total returns, I am immediately interested in learning more. From the statistics I've shared, both have had incredibly strong dividend growth rates. Here are those figures again, just for those two.

While the 10-year growth rate of 46% for Lam isn't sustainable, I am encouraged by growth rates in the mid-double digits for them over time. Likewise, Amphenol has a similar track record of providing double-digit dividend growth rates for extended periods of time. That said, last year's increase was only 4.8%. I think the 50% increase this year has more than made up for it. In any event, I plan on taking a closer look this week at both of these companies and seeing if they fit in my portfolio.

Let me know what you think of my strategy, and feel free to add yours in the comments below! As always, please do your due diligence before making any investment decision.