Top Dividend Stocks To Consider Adding To Your Long-Term Portfolio
Amidst the volatility seen in the stock market recently, more investors could be turning towards dividend stocks. As a result, the highest paying dividend stocks in 2021 could have more room to grow right now. While that may seem like the likely strategy, there are several other key factors to consider when it comes to dividend investing. For starters, companies that focus their resources towards dividends could be lagging in terms of growth projects. This would account for slower stock appreciation over time but provide more predictable income overall. Next, the company’s dividend-paying history would also be another aspect to consider. In this case, consistency and steady increments in a company’s dividends would be important to look out for.
By and large, investing in industry leaders would benefit investors, given that such companies would have more excess funds. For instance, we could look at consumer staples giant PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP). The company has been paying dividends since 1965 with 2021 marking its 49th consecutive annual dividend increase. PEP stock would be a go-to for more conservative dividend investors now. Meanwhile, investors looking to benefit from both stock capital gains and dividends would likely turn towards the tech sector. Sure, the top tech stocks now are experiencing dips and don’t offer the highest yielding dividends, but they remain long-term growth players, nonetheless. Take companies such as Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) for example. Microsoft has been steadily increasing its dividends for the past decade while investing in its fast-growing tech divisions as well.
Having read all of this, you might be keen to invest in some dividend stocks yourself. After all, some would argue that it provides a chance to diversify your portfolio while securing more consistent income. Regardless, here are four making waves in the stock market today.
Top Dividend Stocks To Buy [Or Avoid] Now
- Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE: PG)
- AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T)
- Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE: BEP)
- AbbVie Inc. (NYSE: ABBV)
Procter & Gamble Company
Procter & Gamble (PG) is a multinational consumer goods corporation. In essence, it specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer health and hygiene products. Its consumer goods are sold in over 180 countries and territories. From its shaving products Gillette to beauty products like Pantene, chances are you have something in your house that is made by PG. The company’s stock currently trades at $138.27 as of 10:41 a.m. ET. In April, the company announced its third-quarter financials for the fiscal year 2021.
In it, the company reported that net sales for the quarter were $18.1 billion, an increase of 5% year-over-year. Also, PG reported a diluted net earnings per share of $1.26, a 13% increase compared to a year earlier. Operating cash flow was $4.1 billion for the quarter and the company also returned $5 billion of cash to shareholders via $2 billion of dividend payments and $3 billion of common stock purchases.
Earlier in April, the company also announced a 10% increase in quarterly dividends, marking the 65th consecutive year that the company has increased its dividend. Given all of this, will you consider buying PG stock?
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AT&T Inc.
AT&T is one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies and providers of mobile telephone services. The company operates mainly through its Communication and WarnerMedia segments. Firstly, its Communication segment provides wireless and wireline telecom, video, and broadband services to customers. Secondly, its WarnerMedia segment develops, produces, and distributes feature films, television, and gaming content. T stock currently trades at $29.94 as of 10:41 a.m. ET.
On Monday, the company announced a definitive agreement to combine WarnerMedia’s entertainment and news assets with Discovery’s content to create a premium global entertainment company. Through this merger, the company will form one of the largest global streaming players in the world. Discovery’s CEO David Zaslav will lead this new company with executives from both companies in key leadership roles.
Impressively, the new company will also have significant scale and investment resources with projected 2023 revenue of approximately $52 billion. It will also bring compelling content to direct-to-consumer subscribers across its portfolio, including HBO Max and the recently launched discovery+. With so much happening to the company, will you consider adding T stock to your portfolio?
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Brookfield Renewable Partners LP
Brookfield is a dividend stock that is also one of the world’s largest publicly traded renewable power platforms. The company’s portfolio is approximately 21,000 MW of capacity. It also boasts nearly 6,000 generating facilities in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia. The company’s goal is to deliver long-term annualized total returns of 12% to 15%. The company is a global leader in hydroelectric power, which comprises approximately 62% of its portfolio.
In early May, the company reported strong first-quarter results. Revenue for the quarter was $1.02 billion. Impressively, the long-term average power generation was 14,099 GWh for the quarter. The company also increased its portfolio by approximately 6,000 MW through construction and advanced stage permitting. It also added nearly 4,500 MW to its development pipeline.
Brookfield also signed 29 agreements for approximately 2,300 GWh of renewable generation with corporate off-takers across all major industries. Also, the company has invested or agreed to invest $1.6 billion of equity across a range of transactions. This includes onshore and offshore wind, utility-scale solar, and distributed generation. Considering all these, is BEP stock a top dividend stock to buy?
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AbbVie Inc.
Another top dividend-paying company to know now would be AbbVie Inc. In brief, AbbVie is a leading name in the field of biotech today. The research-based pharmaceutical company boasts a wide healthcare portfolio, tackling the world’s most prominent illnesses. Primarily, the company conducts research in the fields of immunology, neuroscience, virology, and oncology. According to AbbVie, more than 52 million patients in over 175 countries rely on its treatments annually. Nevertheless, should investors be relying on ABBV stock for gains right now?
Well, we could take a look at its recent quarter fiscal to get a clearer idea on this. Just last month, AbbVie started 2021 strong, posting solid figures in its first-quarter fiscal. In it, the company saw total revenue for the quarter surge by 50.95% year-over-year, adding up to over $13 billion. This was followed by a sizable 18% bump in net income over the same time. On top of that, AbbVie also ended the quarter with over $9.7 billion in cash on hand.
According to CEO Richard Gonzalez, this growth is thanks to AbbVie’s newest products performing well. Looking forward, Gonzalez also mentioned that the company has over a dozen products up for commercial approvals in the next two years. With AbbVie seemingly firing on all cylinders, would you consider ABBV stock worth investing in now?
