But newbies chasing the highest yielders could be missing out on finer points of dividend investing.

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Returns for fat yielders were still more than double those of stocks with the lowest yields.

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It seemed odd, though, that sterling should behave more like those racy high-yielders than a stable reserve currency.

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Even when spreads were at their widest, Greece and Ireland, the euro-zone's high-yielders, were able to finance their borrowing needs at a reasonable cost.

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High yielders obviously pay somewhat more.

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