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• The Dividend Aristocrats offer some of the very passive income solutions.
• Companies that pay dependable dividends rarely go out of style.
• Score this free report today: Access 2 legendary, high-yield dividend stocks Wall Street loves.

Investors love dividend stocks because they provide dependable income, passive income streams, and an excellent opportunity for solid total return. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends, and distributions realized over time. In other words, the total return on an investment or portfolio consists of income and stock appreciation.

Most dividend investors aim to secure a reliable passive income stream from quality dividend stocks. Passive income is a consistent unearned income that doesn’t require active traditional work. It’s a financial goal that can be achieved through various means, including investments, real estate, or side hustles.

Investors looking for defensive companies paying big passive income dividends are drawn to the Dividend Aristocrats, and with good reason. The 67 companies that made the cut for the 2024 S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats list have increased dividends (not just remained the same) for 25 years straight. But the requirements go even further, with the following attributes also mandatory for membership on the list:

• Companies must be worth at least $3 billion each quarterly rebalancing.
• Average daily volume of at least $5 million transactions for every trailing three-month period at every quarterly rebalancing date.
• They must be a member of the S&P 500.

We screened the current list, and five companies that are the highest-yielding Dividend Aristocrats look like grand slam ideas for passive income investors. In addition, readers may want to grab this Dividend Legends free report.

Why do we cover the Dividend Aristocrats?

The fact that these companies have raised their dividends for 25 years is a testament to their dependability and reliability. Those are two “must-have” items for investors who rely on passive income to boost their overall revenue. 

Amcor

This top company makes sense now as they produce always-needed products and pay a robust 4.95% dividend. Amcor PLC (NYSE: AMCR) manufactures and sells packaging products in Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, and the Asia Pacific regions. The company operates through two segments.

The Flexibles segment provides flexible and film packaging products in food and beverage, medical and pharmaceutical, fresh produce, snack food, personal care, and other industries.

The Rigid Packaging segment offers rigid containers for a range of beverage and food products, including:

• Carbonated soft drinks
• Water
• Juices
• Sports drinks
• Milk-based beverages
• Spirits
• Beer
• Sauces
• Dressings
• Spreads
• Personal care items
• Plastic caps for various applications.

The company sells its products primarily through its direct sales force.

Franklin Resources

This company is a mutual fund powerhouse that pays a safe and secure 5.28% dividend. Franklin Resources Inc. (NYSE: BEN) is among the most prominent global money managers.

The firm markets mutual funds and institutional separate accounts under the Franklin, Templeton, and Mutual Series brands. At times, 50% of its sales are from outside the US, an advantage given the maturing US market.

Franklin Resources offers its products and services under the brands of:

• Franklin
• Templeton
• Franklin Mutual Series
• Franklin Bissett
• Fiduciary Trust
• Darby
• Balanced Equity Management
• K2
• LibertyShares
• Edinburgh Partners

The 2023-2024 bull market has proven to be a solid tailwind for the company. While withdrawals from baby boomers may be a concern, the path forward looks solid.

Kenvue

Spun off from Johnson & Johnson, Inc. (NYSE: JNJ) last year, this potential total return home run pays a solid 4.38% dividend. Kenvue Inc. (NYSE: KVUE) is a global consumer health company.

The company operates through three segments:

• Self Care
• Skin Health and Beauty
• Essential Health

The Self Care segment offers cough, cold, and allergy pain care, digestive health, smoking cessation, and other products. Brands include:

• Tylenol
• Nicorette
• Zyrtec

The Skin Health and Beauty segment provides face and body care, hair care, sun care, and other products. Brands include:

• Neutrogena
• Aveeno
• OGX brand names.

The Essential Health segment offers oral and baby, women’s health, and wound care products. Brands include:

• Listerine
• Johnson’s
• Band-Aid
• Stayfree

Realty Income

This is an ideal stock for growth and income investors looking for a safer contrarian idea for the rest of 2024 that pays a whopping 5.48% dividend. Realty Income Corp. (NYSE: O) is an S&P 500 company that provides stockholders with dependable monthly income and the highest yield of the Dividend Aristocrats.

The company is structured as a REIT, and its monthly dividends are supported by the cash flow from over 15,540 real estate properties owned under long-term lease agreements with commercial tenants.

The company has declared 644 consecutive common stock monthly dividends throughout its 55-year operating history and increased the dividend 123 times since Realty Income’s public listing in 1994. It is a top real estate member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats index.

T. Rowe Price Group

This is another top mutual fund company with tremendous assets under management and pays a 4.32% dividend. T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TROW) is a publicly owned investment manager.

The firm provides services to:

• Individuals
• Institutional investors
• Retirement plans
• Financial intermediaries and institutions

It launches and manages equity and fixed-income mutual funds.

T. Rowe Price invests in public equity and fixed-income markets worldwide. It employs fundamental and quantitative analysis with a bottom-up approach.

The firm utilizes in-house and external research to make its investments. It also invests in late-stage venture capital transactions and usually invests between $3 million and $5 million.

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