Monday's Ex-Dividends To Watch: HCC, AFSI, ESS, APD

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Monday, Dec. 30, 2013, 24 U.S. common stocks are scheduled to go ex-dividend. The dividend yields on these stocks range from 0.7% to 8.6%. All of these stocks can be found on our stocks going ex-dividend section of our dividend calendar.

Highlighted Stocks Going Ex-Dividend Monday:

HCC Insurance Holdings

Owners of HCC Insurance Holdings (NYSE: HCC) shares as of market close today will be eligible for a dividend of 22 cents per share. At a price of $45.85 as of 9:35 a.m. ET, the dividend yield is 2%.

The average volume for HCC Insurance Holdings has been 332,400 shares per day over the past 30 days. HCC Insurance Holdings has a market cap of $4.6 billion and is part of the insurance industry. Shares are up 23.2% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

STOCKS TO BUY: TheStreet Quant Ratings has identified a handful of stocks that can potentially TRIPLE in the next 12 months. Learn more.

HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. underwrites non-correlated specialty insurance products worldwide. The company operates in five segments: U.S. Property and Casualty, Professional Liability, Accident and Health, U.S. Surety and Credit, and International. The U.S. The company has a P/E ratio of 11.58.

TheStreet Ratings rates HCC Insurance Holdings as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures, notable return on equity and increase in stock price during the past year. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income. You can view the full HCC Insurance Holdings Ratings Report now.

• See our top-yielding stocks list.

AmTrust Financial Services

Owners of AmTrust Financial Services (NASDAQ: AFSI) shares as of market close today will be eligible for a dividend of 14 cents per share. At a price of $32.17 as of 9:34 a.m. ET, the dividend yield is 1.8%.

The average volume for AmTrust Financial Services has been 884,900 shares per day over the past 30 days. AmTrust Financial Services has a market cap of $2.3 billion and is part of the insurance industry. Shares are up 12.7% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

STOCKS TO BUY: TheStreet Quant Ratings has identified a handful of stocks that can potentially TRIPLE in the next 12 months. Learn more.

AmTrust Financial Services, Inc., through its subsidiaries, underwrites and provides property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company has a P/E ratio of 8.79.

TheStreet Ratings rates AmTrust Financial Services as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its robust revenue growth, solid stock price performance, impressive record of earnings per share growth, notable return on equity and largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company shows weak operating cash flow. You can view the full AmTrust Financial Services Ratings Report now.

• See our top-yielding stocks list.

Essex Property

At a price of $144.77 as of 9:32 a.m. ET, the dividend yield is 3.4%.

The average volume for Essex Property has been 315,400 shares per day over the past 30 days. Essex Property has a market cap of $5.5 billion and is part of the real estate industry. Shares are down 0.9% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

STOCKS TO BUY: TheStreet Quant Ratings has identified a handful of stocks that can potentially TRIPLE in the next 12 months. Learn more.

Essex Property Trust, Inc. operates as a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust in the United States. It engages in the ownership, operation, management, acquisition, development, and redevelopment of apartment communities, as well as commercial properties. The company has a P/E ratio of 35.30.

TheStreet Ratings rates Essex Property as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its robust revenue growth, impressive record of earnings per share growth, compelling growth in net income, expanding profit margins and increase in stock price during the past year. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company shows weak operating cash flow. You can view the full Essex Property Ratings Report now.

• See our top-yielding stocks list.

Air Products & Chemicals

Owners of Air Products & Chemicals (NYSE: APD) shares as of market close today will be eligible for a dividend of 71 cents per share. At a price of $113.71 as of 9:35 a.m. ET, the dividend yield is 2.5%.

The average volume for Air Products & Chemicals has been 1.1 million shares per day over the past 30 days. Air Products & Chemicals has a market cap of $23.9 billion and is part of the chemicals industry. Shares are up 35.3% year-to-date as of the close of trading on Thursday.

STOCKS TO BUY: TheStreet Quant Ratings has identified a handful of stocks that can potentially TRIPLE in the next 12 months. Learn more.

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, performance materials, equipment, and services worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Merchant Gases, Tonnage Gases, Electronics and Performance Materials, and Equipment and Energy. The company has a P/E ratio of 23.85.

TheStreet Ratings rates Air Products & Chemicals as a buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its growth in earnings per share, expanding profit margins, solid stock price performance and reasonable valuation levels. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income. You can view the full Air Products & Chemicals Ratings Report now.

• See our top-yielding stocks list.

More About Dividends:

One benefit of owning a stock is the potential that you will be paid a dividend. The distribution of dividend payments is another way for a company to share its profit with you. A dividend means that the company pays you a certain amount of money, either as a one-time payment or more commonly on a quarterly basis, for each share of stock you own.

Many times, dividends come at the expense of greater price appreciation, because the company is distributing its profits to shareholders rather than reinvesting the profits back into the growth of the company. However, companies that pay dividends can be very attractive to investors when they offer a steady stream of income. There are some important terms and dates an investor should be familiar with before purchasing any dividend-paying companies. Let's work through an example to help better explain some of these terms:

On March 1, ABC Widget Company has decided that because it holds excess cash and lacks investment opportunities, it would like to reward shareholders with a regular quarterly dividend payment. The date for this particular announcement is known as the declaration date. It is on this date that the company announces the specific dividend payment along with the holder of record date (aka record date) and the payment date. The company announces that a dividend payment of 25 cents per share will be payable March 31, 2012 (the payment date) to all shareholders of record at the close of business on March 16, 2012 (holder of record date). What does this all mean? Well the short story is that the company looks at its records on March 16 and anyone listed on the books as an owner of ABC Widget company will be eligible for the dividend payment (on March 31).

The one other important term to remember is the ex-dividend date. The ex-dividend date (typically two trading days before the holder of record date for U.S. securities) is the day in which a company begins trading without the dividend. In order to have a claim on a dividend, shares must be purchased no later than the last business day before the ex-dividend date. A company trading ex-dividend will have the upcoming dividend subtracted from the share price at the start of the trading day. Many times, the price of a stock will increase in anticipation of the upcoming dividend as the ex-dividend date approaches, yet will fall back by the amount of the dividend on the ex-dividend date.

• See our dividend calendar.