NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire - Jan 16, 2012) - Dividend payments throughout Wall Street are expected to skyrocket in the coming months according to a research note from Standard & Poor's. With annual reports being printed and shareholder meetings coming up, Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at Standard & Poor's Indices believes that dividend payments could post a double-digit increase during the mid-January through February season, setting a new record for the S&P 500. Five Star Equities examines the outlook for diversified REITs and provides investment research on Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE: [ NLY ]) and ARMOUR Residential REIT, Inc. (NYSE: [ ARR ]). Access to the full company reports can be found at:

[ www.fivestarequities.com/NLY ]

[ www.fivestarequities.com/ARR ]

Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) pay some of the largest dividends on Wall Street, which is by design. To be a REIT, a company must distribute at least 90 percent of its taxable income to shareholders annually in the form of dividends.

REIT earnings could be in for a haircut, however. Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser argues that the U.S. Federal Reserve may need to raise interest rates before the middle of 2013, despite the central bank's repeated forecasts that it expected to keep rates ultra-low until at least then.

Five Star Equities releases regular market updates on diversified REITs so investors can stay ahead of the crowd and make the best investment decisions to maximize their returns. Take a few minutes to register with us free at [ www.fivestarequities.com ] and get exclusive access to our numerous stock reports and industry newsletters.

Mortgage REITs (mREITs) invest in mortgages rather than buildings, for example. Most mREITS do so mostly with borrowed money. As reported on CNN Money, mREITs make their money off the difference between their borrowing costs and the yield on their portfolio. "Unlike banks in recent years, they've performed well: The Dow Jones U.S. Mortgage REITs index has a three-year average annual return of 19%," John Birger, contributor at CNN Money reports.

Presently Annalys Capital Management pays an annual dividend of around $2.28 per share for a yield of approximately 14 percent. ARMOUR Residential REIT pays an annual dividend of $1.32 per share for a hefty yield of around 18.3 percent.

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