The S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats, whose members have increased their dividends for at least 25 straight years, recently added seven companies.

The new entrants are: Albemarle (ALB); Amcor (AMCR); Atmos Energy (ATO); Essex Property Trust (ESS); Expeditors International of Washington (EXPD); Ross Stores (ROST); and Realty Income (O), which pays a monthly dividend, Barron's reported.

The Aristocrats are considered proxies for well-established companies that have a long history of increasing their dividends every year. Longtime Aristocrats include Exxon Mobil (ticker: XOM), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), and Coca-Cola (KO).

Getting added to the elite list will force funds that track Dividend Aristocrats, such as the ProShares S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats exchange traded fund, to purchase shares of the recently added companies.

The newbies officially became members of the group, which now has 64 members, on Feb. 3. No companies were removed from the group as part of S&P Dow Jones Indices’ annual review of the group’s composition, Barron's reported.

Highlighting the new additions, Barron's said:

• Albemarle, a specialty chemical company, yields 1.7% and its shares recently traded around $87.
• Amcor yields 4.3%. The product-packaging company's shares recently traded at $11.
• Atmos Energy, whose shares trade just under $118, yields 2%. It is a regulated utility.
• Ross Stores, a national discount apparel retailer, has a yield of 0.9%. That’s well below the S&P 500’s average yield of 1.8%. Shares were recently around $118.
• Expeditors International of Washington, a shipping and logistics company, yields 1.3%. It recently traded around $74.
• The other two companies that entered the club—Realty Income and Essex Property Trust—are real-estate investment trusts, or REITs, that must distribute at least 90% of their taxable income to their shareholders every year. Realty Income yields 3.5% and shares trade around $79. Essex Property Trust yields 2.5% and shares were recently trading around $315.

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