ALLETE (ALE) will raise its quarterly dividend by 2 percent to 63 cents quarterly in 2021. This follows a dividend hike of 5.1 percent to $0.6175 per share in the first quarter of 2020. The utility company has now increased the dividend 11 straight years/

The next regular quarterly dividend is payable March 1, 2021 to common shareholders of record at the close of business February 16, 2021. A new annualized dividend rate of $2.52 per share yields 3.8% at a stock price of $66.

From today's press release: “ALLETE’s board is confident in this dividend increase given our growth outlook for ALLETE,” said ALLETE President and CEO Bethany Owen. “We are pleased to deliver another dividend increase to our shareholders, and this adds to our track record of more than 71 consecutive years of dividends paid.”

ALLETE is an energy company headquartered in Duluth, Minn. In addition to its electric utilities, Minnesota Power and Superior Water, Light and Power of Wisconsin, ALLETE owns ALLETE Clean Energy, based in Duluth, U.S. Water Services headquartered in St. Michael, Minn., BNI Energy in Center, N.D., and has an eight percent equity interest in the American Transmission Co.