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  • From PC Maker to AI Powerhouse: How This Tech Veteran Is Cashing in on the Infrastructure Boom

From PC Maker to AI Powerhouse: How This Tech Veteran Is Cashing in on the Infrastructure Boom

March 01, 2026

Every gold rush has its shovel sellers.

In the AI era, real money may flow to the companies building the machines that enable the algorithms.

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Media

Fox News Just Proved the Cable News Business Still Has a King

Fox Corporation's (NASDAQ: FOXA) flagship news channel drew more total-day viewers than CNN and MSNBC combined through February. During primetime, the gap was even wider, with Fox drawing significantly more viewers than both competitors combined. On weekdays, the numbers climbed even higher.

These are not marginal leads. Fox operates on a different tier entirely from the rest of cable news.

Everyone Grew, But Fox Grew From the Top

All three networks posted strong month-over-month gains in February. Cable news viewership was up across the board. But growing when you are already in first place is very different from recovering from behind.

When your competitors celebrate their best month in over a year, and you still beat them combined, the competitive picture speaks for itself.

Cable Is Supposed to Be Dying

The broader narrative says linear television is shrinking and streaming owns the future. Fox keeps defying that story. Multiple shows averaged massive audiences that most streaming originals would envy.

You hear constantly that cable is fading, but Fox Corporation keeps proving it has the most valuable content engine in news media. For a company navigating the shift to digital, having a cable asset this dominant buys serious time and serious leverage.

FOXA currently trades at $56 and pays a dividend of $0.56 per share, a yield of 1.00

Defense

Lockheed Martin Just Locked In Australia's Next Generation of Military Training

Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) secured a new foreign military sale contract to deliver advanced C-130J training systems and upgrades to the Royal Australian Air Force. The package includes full-mission simulators for pilots and crew, cockpit systems trainers, and upgrades to Australia's existing virtual simulation and maintenance platforms. Deliveries begin in 2029.

This is Lockheed deepening a relationship with one of America's closest defense allies through the part of the business most people overlook.

Training Is the Sticky Business

Selling aircraft is a one-time transaction. Selling the training infrastructure around those aircraft creates a relationship that lasts the entire life of the program. Pilots need simulators. Crews need mission rehearsal. Maintenance teams need virtual environments to stay current.

You tend to focus on headline jet deals, but it's the training contracts that keep Lockheed embedded in a customer's operations for decades after the planes are delivered.

Allies Are the Growth Engine

Foreign military sales are becoming an increasingly important part of Lockheed's business. Allied nations are modernizing their forces and basing interoperability with U.S. systems on that foundation.

You see a pattern forming. Lockheed does not just sell defense hardware. It builds the operational layer that allied militaries rely on daily, and that layer is almost impossible to replace once it is in place.

LMT currently trades at $650 and pays a dividend of $13.80 per share, a yield of 2.12%

Breakthrough (Sponsored)

A major energy breakthrough is unfolding — and it’s happening faster than most realize.

An MIT-trained scientist has unlocked a virtually inexhaustible energy source, now drawing attention from the Trump administration.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, it could power the world for billions of years.

That’s why big techs are racing to get involved.

Once operational, the fuel itself costs nothing.

Which is why early positioning — even small — could matter more than people expect.

Consumer Brands

Is This the Moment Starbucks Stops Being Just a Coffee Company?

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) is launching five new health-focused ready-to-drink products hitting grocery stores and major retailers nationwide in March.

The lineup includes high-protein coffee drinks, zero-sugar energy options, and low-calorie versions of its most popular bottled formats. Every new product is built around the same idea. Less sugar, more function, and easier access outside the coffeehouse.

The Coffeehouse Is Not Enough Anymore

Starbucks introduced protein coffee in its stores last fall and saw immediate traction. Now it is taking that concept off the menu and into the grocery aisle, where daily habits are built. The move puts Starbucks in direct competition with protein shakes, functional beverages, and energy drinks, not just other coffee brands.

You think of Starbucks as a place to visit. The company increasingly wants to be something you grab off a shelf without thinking twice.

Retail Shelf Space Is the Real Battlefield

Coffeehouses drive brand love. Grocery shelves drive volume. Starbucks already has one of the largest ready-to-drink coffee businesses in the country through its joint venture with PepsiCo. Expanding into functional wellness beverages gives it a reason to claim more shelf space in a category growing faster than traditional coffee.

You see a company that built its identity around the in-store experience now putting equal energy into becoming a daily grocery habit. That shift says everything about where Starbucks sees its next chapter of growth.

SBUX currently trades at $98 and pays a dividend of $2.48 per share, a yield of 2.53%.

Dividend Stocks Worth Watching

Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE: DELL) just made it clear it intends to be a primary dealer in the AI infrastructure race. The company has lifted its fiscal 2027 outlook, forecasting revenue of up to $115 billion as enterprise and hyperscale customers accelerate spending on AI systems.

The real headline is inside the data center. Dell expects AI server revenue to surge 103% to roughly $50 billion by fiscal 2027. It now counts more than 4,000 AI server customers, including xAI and CoreWeave, underscoring its growing footprint across next-generation compute buildouts.

While traditional PC demand remains uneven, management is signaling that AI infrastructure is more than a short-cycle bump. If these projections hold, Dell is positioning itself as a scaled backbone provider for the AI economy, with backlog strength and enterprise adoption driving the next phase of growth. The firm just increased its dividend by 20% following record Q4 earnings.

Globe Life Inc. (NYSE: GL) is quietly reshaping its board with two high-profile additions that bring technology, regulatory, and governance firepower.

Derek T. Kan, currently a senior executive at Shopify Inc. and a former Chief Business Officer at Deliverr, brings deep experience in digital innovation and e-commerce infrastructure. His background also includes senior roles in the federal government and service as Vice Chairman of the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors, adding regulatory and oversight expertise. Sandra L. Phillips, longtime Chief Legal Officer at Toyota Motor North America Inc., brings more than three decades of legal, compliance, and enterprise risk leadership.

For investors, the message is strategic rather than symbolic. As a life and supplemental health insurer focused on middle-income households, Globe Life is signaling a sharper focus on governance, regulatory navigation, and technology-driven distribution, all critical levers as the insurance industry modernizes and competition intensifies. GL pays a 33-cent quarterly dividend following a 22.22% raise earlier this week. 

OneSpan Inc. (NYSE: OSPN) has tipped its hand with its latest earnings release, revealing that it’s building something worth paying attention to: a high-margin, recurring revenue security business that is quickly gaining operating leverage.

With the acquisition of Build38, management is guiding for a meaningful step-up in recurring software revenue in 2026, with AI-resistant authentication and fraud protection sitting at the core of its growth strategy. In a world where digital banking and online transactions move in only one direction, security is not optional.

The compelling part is not just growth. It is profitability. Strong margins, minimal debt, and expanding recurring revenue give this small-cap security player the profile of a disciplined compounder rather than a cash-burning tech story. OSPN pays a 13-cent dividend, yielding 4.57%.

Dividend Increases

NAT has lifted its dividend to 17 cents, a growth of 30.77%. Its new yield is 12.57%

LAMR has raised its dividend to $1.60, a rise of 3.23%. Its new yield is 4.72%.

VIPS has increased its dividend to 62 cents, a 44.19% increase. Its new yield is 3.42%. 

PEG has increased its dividend to 67 cents, up 6.35%. Its new yield is 3.12%.

RRBI has increased its dividend to 25 cents, a rise of 66.67%. Its new yield is 1.1%.

Dividend Decreases

TXO has cut its dividend to 30 cents, a 14.29% reduction. Its new yield is 9.57%. 

NCDL has cut its dividend to 45 cents, a 20.00% decline. Its new yield is 10.78%.

VTS has reduced its dividend to 44 cents, a 22.22% drop. Its new yield is 7.91%.

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Upcoming Dividend Payers

AWK’s ex-dividend date for the forthcoming 83-cent payment is 03/3/26.

JBL’s ex-dividend date for the forthcoming 8-cent payment is 03/3/26.

HAS’s ex-dividend date for the forthcoming 70-cent payment is 03/4/26.

PSX’s ex-dividend date for the forthcoming $1.27 payment is 03/4/26.

Everything Else

That’s all for today’s edition of the Dividend Brief.

Thanks for reading, and if you have any feedback or dividend stocks you want me to take a look at, just reply to this email!

—Noah Zelvis
DividendBrief.com