The Monthly Dividend Company

Third-quarter earnings were announced today by Realty Income (NYS: O) , an equity real estate investment trust. While the stock is down slightly due to normalized funds from operations per share coming in a penny shy of estimates, quarterly performance was fine overall, with revenue climbing 13%.

For dividend investors unfamiliar with Realty Income, this company may be worth a closer look. While it doesn't boast the double-digit yields of big-time mortgage REITs, like Annaly Capital (NYS: NLY) and American Capital Agency (NAS: AGNC) , Realty Income refers to itself as "The Monthly Dividend Company" and has actually earned the name.

September marked the company's 60th consecutive quarterly dividend increase, with a total of 68 increases since its 1994 IPO. Through September 2012, Realty Income had paid out a staggering 506 consecutive monthly dividends, truly delivering on its claim-to-fame name. For the full story on "The Monthly Dividend Company," be sure to check out the video below.

While you may not be familiar with Realty Income, Annaly Capital Management is one company that's hard to miss, thanks to its history of huge dividend payouts to shareholders. While the stock is extremely enticing, there are some crucial issues that investors must understand about Annaly's business model before buying in. The Motley Fool's brand new premium research report on NLY covers these absolute must-know topics, as well as future opportunities and potential pitfalls to the company's strategy. To access your copy, simply click here now.

The article The Monthly Dividend Company originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Matt Koppenheffer has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. The Motley Fool owns shares of Annaly Capital Management. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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