Final answer:
The total return of 8.2 percent on the stock includes dividends and capital gains, but it doesn't isolate the stock price increase. Historical trends show that capital gains have been higher than dividends past the 1980s, indicating the return could be from both dividends and capital gains. Without specific figures, precise yield or price increase cannot be determined.
Step-by-step explanation:
If you purchased 100 shares of a stock and realized a total return of 8.2 percent upon selling them a year later, it means that the return includes any dividends received as well as any capital gains from the sale of the stock. It does not necessarily mean that the stock price alone increased by 8.2 percent. Therefore, with the information provided, one can assert that the stock increased in value over the past year as part of the total return.
Looking at historical data, such as that provided in Table 17.2, we know that from the 1980s onward, capital gains have often been more significant than dividends. This means that an 8.2 percent total return might include both dividends and a capital gain, but they don't necessarily need to add up precisely to 8.2 percent due to technicalities in calculation methodologies.
Since dividends have decreased since the 1990s and now often provide a return closer to 1% to 2%, if the total return was 8.2 percent, there was likely some capital gain on the stock price itself. However, without explicit information about the stock's performance or the dividends paid, we cannot ascertain the exact dividend yield or the precise amount the stock price increased.