These stocks have increased their dividends every year for 25 years or more.
Certainty is pretty hard to come by on Wall Street these days, what with the threat of rising interest rates and the recent invasion of Ukraine. However, one way investors can tap into more reliable returns is to depend on so-called dividend aristocrats. These special stocks haven’t just paid dividends for a long time, but they also have track records of increasing dividends at least once annually for 25 years or more. The following nine stocks all have this long-term commitment to dividend growth and current dividend yields that are greater than the typical S&P stock. There’s no such thing as a sure bet, but dividend metrics like that provide more certainty than you’ll find elsewhere on Wall Street these days.
AbbVie Inc. (ticker: ABBV)
Abbott Laboratories (ABT) spun off its branded drug operations into AbbVie in 2013. But if you trace ABBV’s roots back through its parent, you come up with an impressive 49 straight years of dividend increases. Branded drugs have a bit more risk thanks to potential patent expirations, but AbbVie has a great product pipeline along with a history of big acquisitions, like its 2020 purchase of Allergan for $63 billion, to ensure it remains on top of the pharma industry. And considering that ABBV’s dividend has surged from 40 cents quarterly at the time of its 2013 spinoff to $1.41 at present, there’s ample proof that this company is trying hard to make sure its shareholders get a piece of its success.
Dividend yield: 3.8%
Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH)
Cardinal is an integrated health care company that offers products and services worldwide to hospitals, doctors’ offices, nursing homes and other similar facilities. This includes the distribution of medical tools, laboratory products and other odds and ends, including exam gloves and bandages. Cardinal’s business isn’t as high margin as companies specializing in branded drugs or high-tech surgery robots, but it is one of the more reliable revenue streams because its customers have strong baseline demand for all these basic medical goods. The result is a consistent revenue stream that has powered 35 consecutive dividend increases.
Dividend yield: 3.7%
Chevron Corp. (CVX)
While many investors would be happy to own a stock that simply managed to squeak out a small gain in 2022, Chevron has thrilled its shareholders with gains of about 30% since Jan. 1, thanks to rising crude oil prices. Broad inflationary pressures, such as consumer prices jumping in January by their fastest rate since 1982 and supply chain disruptions thanks to conflict in Ukraine, have pushed oil to more than $100 a barrel. Regardless of short-term trends, investors can be sure CVX will keep paying its generous dividend. Chevron has increased its dividend for 35 consecutive years, and it continued the tradition in February by raising it again by 6%.
Dividend yield: 3.7%
Cincinnati Financial Corp. (CINF)
Property and casualty insurance provider Cincinnati Financial offers coverage for commercial real estate, autos, homes, boats and other assets. The premiums for this coverage continue to be paid in both good and bad economic times, so the stock has eked out a small gain year to date, even though most of Wall Street is in the red. Furthermore, the prospects of rising interest rates are good for CINF, as it has an investment arm that deploys the cash from these premiums in low-risk, interest-bearing assets, while the insurer waits for claims to come in. Throw in an enviable track record of 61 consecutive annual dividend increases, and this is a dividend aristocrat to watch.
Dividend yield: 2.2%
Consolidated Edison Inc. (ED)
ConEd offers electric services to about 3.5 million customers in mainly the New York City area. The company was founded in 1823 and is one of the oldest publicly traded utilities on Wall Street. It also has one of the longest stretches of annual dividend increases, with 48 consecutive years of hiking its payout after boosting its quarterly payout to 79 cents a share in January from 77.5 cents. Though the increase isn’t huge, the fact that ED yields roughly three times the typical stock in the S&P 500 already is proof of this utility’s long-term commitment to sharing profits with its shareholders.
Dividend yield: 3.6%
General Dynamics Corp. (GD)
General Dynamics is an aerospace and marine specialist that makes everything from nuclear-powered submarines for the Navy to crude oil tankers for Big Oil customers. It also produces artificial intelligence and big data technologies for logistics applications, and other high-tech and high-margin gear. Thanks in part to geopolitical tensions sparked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, GD stock has surged more than 11% in 2022 amid an otherwise rocky environment for stocks. This year will mark the 25th consecutive dividend increase for GD stock, proving its long-term commitment to shareholders.
Dividend yield: 2.1%
Nucor Corp. (NUE)
In an inflationary environment, stocks that deal in raw materials have been doing quite well. That means a nice tail wind for steel products giant Nucor, which has surged more than 110% in the last 12 months. The company specializes in beams, sheets, tubing and rolled steel, so it has seen a decent uptick in demand and expanding margins thanks to rising commodity prices as the economy recovers from the pandemic. But the real appeal for income investors is the fact that Nucor has increased its dividend for 49 consecutive years — every year since it first began paying dividends in 1973. That means even if share prices don’t keep flying high, you can still depend on a reliable and growing payday.
Dividend yield: 1.5%
People’s United Financial Inc. (PBCT)
People’s United is a roughly $8 billion regional bank that operates about 400 branches from New York to Maine. These smaller financial firms aren’t quite as flashy as the big investment banks out there, but they have much more stable operations because they rely on “meat and potatoes” lending, including home mortgages, small business lines of credit and the like. PBCT has managed to swim upstream in a rocky market, thanks to the fact that rising interest rates allow for better margins on this kind of lending, and shares are up about 9% year to date as the S&P has slumped about 10% in the same period. The company marked its 28th consecutive annual dividend increase in 2021, and investors can expect that trend to continue in 2022.
Dividend yield: 3.5%
Sysco Corp. (SYY)
Food service giant Sysco Corp. distributes meats, vegetables, dairy, beverages and nonfood items like disposable cutlery and napkins to industrial kitchens. That includes restaurants but also college cafeterias, hospitals and other similar facilities. SYY stock took a big hit during the pandemic, but bounced back nicely in 2021 as food distribution began in earnest to eateries that had closed down during the worst of pandemic restrictions. In 2022, that tail wind continues with projections of more than 20% revenue growth this fiscal year. Sysco has increased its dividend once per year for more than 50 years running, so it’s no surprise that this company worked hard to keep delivering payouts to shareholders despite major setbacks. Investors can have confidence the dividend growth will continue going forward, too.
Dividend yield: 2.1%
Nine dividend aristocrat stocks to buy now:
— AbbVie Inc. (ABBV)
— Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH)
— Chevron Corp. (CVX)
— Cincinnati Financial Corp. (CINF)
— Consolidated Edison Inc. (ED)
— General Dynamics Corp. (GD)
— Nucor Corp. (NUE)
— People’s United Financial Inc. (PBCT)
— Sysco Corp. (SYY)
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9 Dividend Aristocrat Stocks to Buy Now originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 03/03/22: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
