Investing

6 High-Yield Dividend Stocks Every Passive Income Investor Should Own in 2024

Lee Jackson

Published: October 27, 2024 9:43 am

24/7 Wall St. Insights

• Interest rates are expected to decline to 3.25% by 2026.
• Dividend stocks are a great way to generate safe passive income.
• Passive income is simple: own quality dividends that pay you for doing nothing. Don’t miss out on our brand-new “7 Things I Demand in a Dividend Stock” report. It includes two A++ dividend stocks and how to spot future dividend winners that can put your returns on hyperdrive. Access two legendary, high-yield dividend stocks Wall Street loves.

Most dividend investors seek solid passive income streams from quality dividend stocks. Passive income is a steady stream of unearned income that doesn’t require active traditional work. Shared ideas for earning passive income include investments like dividend stocks, bonds, mutual funds, real estate, and additional income-producing side hustles.

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), passive income generally includes earnings from rental activity or any trade, business, or investment in which the individual does not materially participate.

With the stock market trading at all-time highs and interest rates headed lower for the next year or perhaps longer, growth and income investors who seek dependable passive income are turning to high-yield leaders who are counted on to deliver safe and reliable dividends for years. We screened our 24/7 Wall St. passive income database, looking for quality stocks that pay high-yield dividends, and found six companies that all passive income investors need to own.

Why do we cover dividend stocks?

Dividend stocks provide investors with reliable streams of passive income. Passive income is characterized by its ability to generate revenue without requiring the earner’s continuous active effort, making it a desirable financial strategy for those seeking to diversify their income streams or achieve financial independence.

CVR Energy

This Icahn Enterprises subsidiary is a perfect idea now, with oil way off the 52-week highs and paying shareholders a strong 8.54% dividend. CVR Energy Inc. (NYSE: CVI) engages in petroleum refining, marketing, and nitrogen fertilizer manufacturing activities in the United States with its subsidiaries.

It operates in two segments:

• Petroleum
• Nitrogen Fertilizer

The Petroleum segment refines and supplies gasoline, crude oil, distillate, diesel fuel, and other refined products. It also owns and operates a coking medium-sour crude oil refinery in southeast Kansas and a crude oil refinery in Wynnewood, Oklahoma, as well as supporting logistics assets. This segment primarily serves retailers, railroads, farm cooperatives, and other refiners/marketers.

The Nitrogen Fertilizer segment owns and operates a nitrogen fertilizer plant in North America that utilizes a pet coke gasification process to produce nitrogen fertilizer products and a nitrogen fertilizer facility in East Dubuque, Illinois, that produces nitrogen fertilizers in the form of ammonia and urea ammonium nitrate (UAN), nitric acid, and liquid and granulated urea.

This segment primarily markets UAN products to agricultural customers and ammonia products to agricultural and industrial customers.

Gaming and Leisure Properties

While off the radar, this company offers investors a rich 6% dividend and solid total return potential. Gaming and Leisure Properties Inc. (NASDAQ: GLPI) acquires, finances, and owns real estate property to be leased to gaming operators in triple-net lease arrangements.

In a net lease arrangement, the tenant is responsible for all facility maintenance, insurance required in connection with the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties, taxes levied on or concerning the leased properties, and all utilities and other services necessary or appropriate for the leased properties and the business conducted on the leased properties.

In February of this year, Gaming and Leisure Properties acquired the real estate assets of Tioga Downs Casino Resort for $175 million and entered into a 30-year master lease agreement. Additionally, earnings for the second quarter came in at $0.94, compared to $0.59 in the year-ago quarter.

Pfizer

This top pharmaceutical stock was a massive winner in the COVID-19 vaccine sweepstakes but has been beaten down over the last year as many are not getting boosters. Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide and pays a hefty 5.70% dividend, which has risen yearly for the last 14 years.

The company offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including:

• Cardiovascular metabolic and women’s health under the Premarin family and Eliquis brands
• Biologics, small molecules, immunotherapies, and biosimilars under the Ibrance, Xtandi, Sutent, Inlyta, Retacrit, Lorbrena, and Braftovi brands
• Sterile injectable and anti-infective medicines and oral COVID-19 treatment under the Sulperazon, Medrol, Zavicefta, Zithromax, Vfend, Panzyga, and Paxlovid brands.

Pfizer also provides medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, such as:

• Pneumococcal disease, meningococcal disease, tick-borne encephalitis
• COVID-19 under the Comirnaty/BNT162b2, Nimenrix, FSME/IMMUN-TicoVac, Trumenba, and the Prevnar family brands
• Biosimilars for chronic immune and inflammatory diseases under the Xeljanz, Enbrel, Inflectra, Eucrisa/Staquis, and Cibinqo brands
• Amyloidosis, hemophilia, and endocrine diseases under the Vyndaqel/Vyndamax, BeneFIX, and Genotropin brands

Trading not far from its lowest split-adjusted level in thirteen years, the stock is an incredible bargain at current levels and pays a massive dividend. Pfizer reported revenues of $13.3 billion in the second quarter, representing 3% year-over-year operational growth, despite an expected decline in COVID revenues and a 14% year-over-year operational increase in revenues from the company’s non-COVID product portfolio.

The pharmaceutical giant raised full-year 2024 revenue guidance to $59.5 to $62.5 billion and lifted adjusted diluted EPS guidance to $2.45 to $2.65. Patient investors will get paid one of the highest blue-chip dividends, and shares trade at a reasonable 9.88 times estimated 2025 earnings.

UGI

This Dividend Champion has paid dividends since 1885 and offers a fat 6.07% dividend and stellar total return potential. UGI Corp. (NYSE: UGI) and its subsidiaries distribute, store, transport, and market energy products and related services in the U.S. and internationally.

The company operates through four segments:

• AmeriGas Propane
• UGI International
• Midstream & Marketing
• UGI Utilities

Its extensive network of 1,400 propane distribution locations distributes propane to approximately 1.3 million residential, commercial/industrial, motor fuel, agricultural, and wholesale customers.

The company distributes liquefied petroleum gases (LPG) to:

• Residential
• Commercial
• Industrial
• Agricultural
• Wholesale
• Automobile fuel customers
• Provides logistics, storage, and other services to third-party LPG distributors

In addition, it retails natural gas, liquid fuels, and electricity to approximately 12,400 residential, commercial, and industrial customers at 42,000 locations.

Further, the company distributes natural gas to approximately 677,000 customers in eastern and central Pennsylvania counties through its distribution system of roughly 12,500 miles of gas mains and supplies electricity to approximately 62,600 customers in northeastern Pennsylvania through 2,560 miles of lines and 14 substations.

Additionally, it operates electric generation facilities, which include:

• Coal-fired
• Landfill gas-fueled
• Solar-powered
• Natural gas-fueled facilities
• Natural gas liquefaction, storage, and vaporization facility
• Propane storage and propane-air mixing stations
• Rail transshipment terminals

It manages natural gas pipeline and storage contracts; develops, owns, and operates pipelines, gathering infrastructure, and gas storage facilities.

UPS

With the explosion of internet commerce and the holidays on the way, this company has enormous growth potential and offers a hefty 5.03% dividend. United Parcel Service Inc. (NYSE: UPS) is a package delivery company that provides transportation and delivery, distribution, contract logistics, ocean freight, air freight, customs brokerage, and insurance services.

It operates through two segments:

• U.S. Domestic Package
• International Package

The U.S. Domestic Package segment offers time-definite delivery of letters, documents, small packages, and palletized freight through air and ground services in the United States.

The International Package segment provides guaranteed-day and time-definite international shipping services, comprising guaranteed-time-definite express options in:

• Europe
• Asia
• the Indian subcontinent
• the Middle East
• Africa
• Canada
• Latin America

UPS is not just a package delivery company. It also provides diverse services, including international air and ocean freight forwarding, post-sales, and mail and consulting services.

Furthermore, it offers truckload brokerage services, supply chain solutions to the healthcare and life sciences industries, financial and information services, and fulfillment and transportation management services. This broad portfolio of services ensures the company’s stability and potential for growth, making it an attractive investment option.

Verizon

This top telecommunications company offers tremendous value, trading at 9.5 times estimated 2025 earnings and paying investors a strong 6.11% dividend. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) provides communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and governmental entities worldwide.

It operates in two segments:

• Verizon Consumer Group
• Verizon Business Group

The Consumer segment provides wireless services across the wireless networks in the United States under the Verizon and TracFone brands and through wholesale and other arrangements.

It also provides fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband through its wireless networks and related equipment and devices, such as:

• Smartphones
• Tablets
• Smartwatches and other wireless-enabled connected devices

The segment also offers wireline services in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, and the District of Columbia through its fiber-optic network, Verizon Fios product portfolio, and a copper-based network.

The Business segment provides wireless and wireline communications services and products, including:

• FWA broadband
• Data
• Video and conferencing
• Corporate networking
• Security and managed network
• Local and long-distance voice

Network access services to deliver various IoT services and products to businesses, government customers, and wireless and wireline carriers in the United States and internationally.

5 Passive Income Dividend Giants + Social Security = Retirement Gold