Investors love dividend stocks, especially those with dependable, high yields, because they provide a substantial passive income stream and offer significant total return potential. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends, and distributions realized over time. In other words, the total return on an investment or a portfolio consists of income and stock appreciation. Let’s examine the concept of total return. If you purchase a stock at $20 that pays a 3% dividend ($0.60 per share) and the price rises to $22 in a year, your total return is ($22 + $0.60 − $20) = 13%. This combines price appreciation and dividends received.
The cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for seniors on Social Security was a measly 2.8%. While that is technically in line with overall inflation, it is nowhere near what it takes to buy ribeye steaks at the grocery store now. The average Social Security recipient will receive about $56 per month, which can hardly make a big difference, even over a year. Adding quality stocks with 6% yields and a very low likelihood of being cut anytime soon makes sense now. We screened our 24/7 Wall St. high-yield dividend stock database for quality stocks that pay at least a 6% dividend and are likely to raise their dividends year over year.
Why do we cover dividend stocks?
Since 1926, dividends have accounted for approximately 32% of the S&P 500’s total return, while capital appreciation has accounted for 68%. Therefore, sustainable dividend income and the potential for capital appreciation are essential to total return expectations. A study by Hartford Funds, in collaboration with Ned Davis Research, found that dividend stocks delivered an annualized return of 9.18% over the 50 years from 1973 to 2023. Over the same timeline, this was more than double the annualized return for non-payers (3.95%).
Altria
Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO | MO Price Prediction) is one of the world’s largest producers and marketers of cigarettes and other tobacco-related products. It offers value investors a compelling entry point and a generous 6.68% dividend yield. Altria manufactures and sells smokable and oral tobacco products in the United States.
The company primarily sells cigarettes under the Marlboro brand, as well as:
- Cigars and pipe tobacco, principally under the Black & Mild and Middleton brands
- Moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands
- on! Oral nicotine pouches
- e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand
It sells its tobacco products primarily to wholesalers, including distributors and large retail organizations, such as chain stores.
Altria previously held over 10% of Anheuser-Busch InBev N.V. (NYSE: BUD), the world’s largest brewer. Last year, the company sold 35 million of its 197 million shares through a global secondary offering. That represents 18% of its holdings but still leaves 8% of the outstanding shares in its back pocket. Altria also announced a $2.4 billion stock repurchase plan partially funded by the sale.
Goldman Sachs has a Buy rating with a $72 target price.
Energy Transfer
Energy Transfer L.P. (NYSE: ET) is one of North America’s largest and most diversified midstream energy companies. This top master limited partnership is a safe option for investors seeking energy exposure and income, as it offers a 7.16% distribution yield. Energy Transfer owns and operates one of the largest and most diversified portfolios of energy assets in the United States, with a strategic footprint across all major domestic production basins.
The company is a publicly traded limited partnership with core operations that include:
- Complementary natural gas midstream, intrastate, and interstate transportation and storage assets
- Crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGL), and refined product transportation and terminalling assets
- NGL fractionation
- Various acquisition and marketing assets
Following the acquisition of Enable Partners in December 2021, Energy Transfer owns and operates over 114,000 miles of pipelines and related assets in 41 states, spanning all major U.S. producing regions and markets. This further solidifies its leadership position in the midstream sector.
Through its ownership of Energy Transfer Operating, formerly known as Energy Transfer Partners, the company also owns Lake Charles LNG Company; the general partner interests, the incentive distribution rights, and 28.5 million standard units of Sunoco L.P. (NYSE: SUN); and the public partner interests and 39.7 million standard units of USA Compression Partners L.P. (NYSE: USAC).
Barclays has an Overweight rating with a $22 target price.
Pfizer
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs. This top pharmaceutical stock was a massive winner in the COVID-19 vaccine sweepstakes, but has been crushed over the past two years as many people have not received boosters. Pfizer discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It pays a dependable 6.42% dividend, which has increased annually for the past 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, and 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
Pfizer anticipates full-year 2025 revenues in the range of $61.0 billion to $64.0 billion. This includes the expectation that revenues from COVID-19 products in 2025 will be broadly consistent with 2024 levels, after excluding approximately $1.2 billion of non-recurring Paxlovid revenue in 2024.
Guggenheim has a Buy rating and a $35 target price.
Plains All American Pipeline
This stock has been locked in a tight trading range and appears poised to break out, while offering a dependable 7.68% dividend yield. Plains All American Pipeline L.P. (NYSE: PAA) engages in the pipeline transportation, terminalling, storage, and gathering of crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGL) in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments.
The Crude Oil segment offers:
- Gathering and transporting crude oil through pipelines
- Gathering systems
- Trucks, barges, or railcars
- Terminalling, storage, and other facilities-related services and merchant activities
The Natural Gas Liquids segment provides:
- Gathering
- Fractionation
- Storage
- Transportation
- Terminalling activities
- Ethane, propane, normal butane, iso-butane, natural gasoline, and crude oil refining processes
Raymond James has a Strong Buy rating with a $22 target.
Verizon
Commonly known as Verizon, this American multinational telecommunications company continues to offer tremendous value. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) trades 9.13 times its estimated 2026 earnings, is up almost 10% in 2025, and pays a hefty 6.13% dividend. Verizon provides a range of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and government entities worldwide through two segments:
- Verizon Consumer Group
- Verizon Business Group
The Consumer segment provides wireless services across the United States through Verizon and TracFone networks, as well as 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 and northeastern United States through its fiber-optic network, Verizon Fios product portfolio, and 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.
TD Cowen has a Buy rating and a $51 price target.
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