The stock market has been on an incredible roll in one of the hottest bull markets in years. Every month since October, the market has been up as the groundswell of attention to Artificial Intelligence has driven a frenzy for everything AI. The 5-month winning streak is the longest since 2013.

The problem for investors, especially those starting to suffer from the dreaded disease FOMO (fear of missing out), is that all bull markets end. Sometimes, they end slowly, and sometimes, there is a market crash. One thing is for sure: the AI rally will end at some point, and you don’t want to be the last one on the Titanic.

While it was a tough stretch for passive income shareholders, 2024 could be the year many interest rate-sensitive stocks bounce back with a vengeance. While there is a very remote possibility of one final interest rate hike looming if inflation rears its head again, many on Wall Street feel that the Federal Reserve will start lowering rates later this year. So, now is a great time to shift some capital to quality dividend-paying stocks.

Investors seeking dividend dependability may be drawn to the Dividend Kings. These 53 companies have raised their dividends for 50 consecutive years or more. We screened this list for six of the highest-yielding stocks investors can Buy now and hold forever. We passed on Leggett & Platt  Inc. (NYSE: LEG) as the company’s payout ratio is now at a stunning 128%, which likely cannot be sustained, and 2023 sales were down 8%. The 10.18% yield is sweet but likely in danger of being cut at some point this year. 

Altria

This maker of tobacco products offers value investors a great entry point now and a rich 8.81% dividend. Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) manufactures and sells smokable and oral tobacco products in the United States through its subsidiaries.

The company provides cigarettes primarily under the Marlboro brand;

• Cigars and pipe tobacco, principally under the Black & Mild brand
• Moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands
• on! Oral nicotine pouches.

It sells its tobacco products primarily to wholesalers, including distributors and large retail organizations, such as chain stores.

Altria owns over 10% of Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD), the world’s largest brewer. Recently, the company announced it would sell 35 million of its 197 million shares through a global secondary offering. 

Universal Corporation

While this company’s products, like Altria’s, may not be for everyone, they have strong demand, have been in business for almost 150 years, and offer shareholders a hefty 6.26% dividend. Universal Corporation (NYSE: UVV) processes and supplies leaf tobacco and plant-based ingredients worldwide.

The company operates through two segments:

• Tobacco Operations
• Ingredients Operations.

It procures, finances, processes, packs, stores, and ships leaf tobacco for sale to manufacturers of consumer tobacco products.

The company:

• Contracts, purchases, processes, and sells flue-cured, burley, and oriental tobaccos that are primarily used in the manufacture of cigarettes
• Dark air-cured tobaccos manufacture naturally wrapped cigars, cigarillos, and smokeless and pipe tobacco products.

Universal Corporation also provides value-added services, including

• Blending, chemical, and physical tobacco testing
• Service cutting for various manufacturers
• Manufacturing reconstituted leaf tobacco
• Just-in-time inventory management services
• Electronic nicotine delivery systems
• Customer smoke testing services

Canadian Utilities Limited

This Canadian giant offers a hefty 5.87% dividend and is a stock that is way off most investors’ radar. Canadian Utilities Limited (OTC: CDUAF) operates electricity, natural gas, renewables, pipelines, liquids, and retail energy businesses in Canada, Australia, and internationally.

It operates through:

• ATCO Energy Systems
• ATCO EnPower
• Corporate & Other segments

The ATCO Energy Systems segment provides regulated electricity transmission and distribution services in northern and central east Alberta, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and the Lloydminster area of Saskatchewan; and integrated natural gas transmission and distribution services in Alberta, the Lloydminster area of Saskatchewan, and Western Australia.

It owns and operates approximately:

• 9,100 kilometers of natural gas pipelines
• 11 compressor sites
• 3,600 receipt and delivery points
• salt cavern natural gas storage peaking facility near Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta in Canada.

The ATCO EnPower segment provides:

• Hydro, solar, wind, and natural gas electricity generation
• Natural gas storage
• Industrial water solutions
• Clean fuels, including hydrogen, carbon capture
• Underground storage projects and related infrastructure development in Alberta, the Yukon; the Northwest Territories, Australia, Ontario, Mexico, and Chile

The Corporate & Other segment retails electricity and natural gas and provides whole-home solutions.

3M

This top company could jump with a continued economic pick-up. The shares have rallied over the last month and pay a solid 5.76% dividend. 3M Company (NYSE: MMM) is a diversified technology company worldwide.

It operates through four segments:

• Safety and Industrial
• Transportation and Electronics
• Health Care
• Consumer

The Safety and Industrial segment offers:

• Industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications
• Auto body repair solutions
• Closure systems for personal hygiene products
• Masking and packaging materials
• Electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance
• Power distribution and electrical original equipment manufacturers
• Structural adhesives and tapes
• Respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions
• Natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles

The 3M Transportation and Electronics segment provides:

• Ceramic solutions
• Attachment tapes
• Films, sound, and temperature management for vehicles
• Premium large-format graphic films for advertising and fleet signage
• Light management films and electronics assembly solutions
• Packaging and interconnection solutions
• Reflective signage for highway and vehicle safety

Italy, the company’s Healthcare segment offers:

• Food safety indicator solutions
• Healthcare procedure coding and reimbursement software
• Skin, wound care, and infection prevention products and solutions
• Dentistry and orthodontic solutions
• Filtration and purification systems

The Consumer segment provides:

• Consumer bandages
• Braces, supports, and consumer respirators;
• Cleaning products for the home
• Retail abrasives
• Paint accessories
• Car care DIY products
• Picture hanging
• Consumer air quality solutions
• Stationery products

Northwest Natural Holding

This off-the-radar utility stock suits worried conservative investors and pays a solid 5.43% dividend. Northwest Natural Holding Company (NYSE: NWN), through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation customers in Oregon and Southwest Washington.

The company also operates 5.7 billion cubic feet of the Mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities and third-party marketers;

• Offers natural gas asset management services
• Operates an appliance retail center.
• In addition, it engages in gas storage, water, non-regulated renewable natural gas, and other investments and activities.

The company provides natural gas service through approximately:

• 786,000 meters in Oregon and southwest Washington
• Water services to about 80,000 people through about 33,000 water and wastewater connections in the Pacific Northwest and Texas.

Federal Realty Investment Trust

While real estate has slowly come back, demand is still growing, and hard assets are good in inflationary times. Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT) is a recognized leader in the ownership, operation, and redevelopment of high-quality retail-based properties in major coastal markets from Washington, D.C., to Boston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

Federal Realty’s mission is to deliver long-term, sustainable growth through investing in densely populated, affluent communities where retail demand exceeds supply.

Its expertise includes creating urban, mixed-use neighborhoods like:

• Santana Row in San Jose, California,
• Pike & Rose in North Bethesda, Maryland, and
• Assembly Row in Somerville, Massachusetts.

Federal Realty’s 102 properties include approximately 3,300 tenants in 26 million square feet and 3,100 residential units. Federal Realty has increased its quarterly dividends to its shareholders, which is currently 4.37% for 56 consecutive years, the longest record in the REIT industry.

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