Dividend.com: U.S. Market Hurting Toyota

Lufkin is a "Recommended" dividend stock, holding a Dividend.com Rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars.

Strayer Education: Higher 'Earning'

Strayer Education (STRA Quote) gave investors another solid quarter of earnings results last week. The for-profit education company's management also presented optimistic third-quarter guidance for earnings to come in between 79 cents and 81 cents a share, which is above the consensus estimates of 75 cents.

Enrollment at Strayer University for the 2008 summer term rose 20% to 34,176 students. The company has developed a solid niche by focusing on attracting working adults to their educational programs. Students are able to structure classes and online programs around their work schedules. The company has been a good stock to own, rising over 40% in the last 12 months.

For investors, we think the shares are a solid investment play, but would prefer to buy the stock on pullbacks, especially since shares ran up when the company reported. Strayer Education has a 0.68% dividend yield, based on Friday's closing stock price of $219.24.

Strayer Education is a "Recommended" dividend stock, holding a Dividend.com Rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars.

Simon Property Group: Shopping for Better Earnings

Simon Property Group (SPG Quote), one of the world's largest mall operators, raised the low end of its projected range for funds from operations after reporting its quarterly earnings. The company expects to report between $6.38 and $6.45 a share for the year, above consensus estimates of $6.43.

The company did say its net income would be between $2.01 and $2.08 a share, lower than its prior forecast of $2.03 to $2.13. We are concerned that the company will have a difficult time raising rents as consistently as it has previously has been able to. The weak economic and retail environment will not turn on a dime, and thus we are removing Simon Property Group from our "Recommended" list.