Investors love dividend stocks because they provide dependable income and give investors a great opportunity for solid total return. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends, and distributions realized over time. In other words, the actual investment or portfolio return consists of dividend income and stock appreciation.
We screened our 24/7 Wall St. research database, looking for companies in the S&P 500 that were rated Buy at major Wall Street firms that also paid the highest dividends in the venerable index now that we are in December. We listed the stocks in order of the highest dividend.
Walgreens Boots Alliance
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This huge drugstore chain is a safe retail play for investors looking to add health care. It trades at a very cheap 6.23 times 2023 earnings expectations and pays a significant 9.24% dividend. Walgreens Boots Alliance (NYSE: WBA) is a pharmacy-led health and beauty retail company. It operates through three segments: Retail Pharmacy USA, Retail Pharmacy International, and Pharmaceutical Wholesale.
The Retail Pharmacy USA segment sells prescription drugs and various retail products, including health, wellness, beauty, personal care, consumables, and general merchandise, through its retail drugstores. It also provides specialty pharmacy and mail services; this segment operates nearly 10,000 retail stores under the Walgreens and Duane Reade brands in the United States and six specialty pharmacies.
The Retail Pharmacy International segment sells prescription drugs, health and wellness, beauty, personal care, and other consumer products through its pharmacy-led health and beauty stores and optical practices, as well as through boots.com and an integrated mobile application.
This segment operated 4,428 retail stores under the
- Boots
- Benavides
- Ahumada in the United Kingdom, Thailand, Norway, the Republic of Ireland, the Netherlands, Mexico, and Chile, and 550 optical practices, including 165 on a franchise basis.
The Pharmaceutical Wholesale segment engages in the wholesale and distribution of specialty and generic pharmaceuticals, health and beauty products, and home healthcare supplies and equipment, as well as provides related services to pharmacies and other healthcare providers.
Altria
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This maker of tobacco products offers value investors a great entry point now and pays a massive 9.22% dividend. Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) is the parent company of:
- Philip Morris USA (cigarettes),
- UST (smokeless),
- John Middleton (cigars),
- Ste. Michelle Wine Estates
- Philip Morris Capital Corp.
- PMUSA enjoys a 51% share of the US cigarette market, led by its top cigarette brand, Marlboro
Altria also owns over 10% of Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD), the world’s largest brewer, which some feel is worth more than $10 billion and a company segment that could be sold. Given the public relations disaster the company has gone through this year, it could very well be on the chopping board.
In June, the company purchased NJOY Holdings, which makes electronic cigarettes and vaping products, for $2.75 billion.
Verizon Communications
Source: photobyphm / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
Source: photobyphm / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
This top telecommunications company offers tremendous value at current levels and a significant 7% dividend. Verizon Communications, Inc (NYSE: VZ) is one of the largest US telecom companies. It provides wireless and wireline services to retail, enterprise, and wholesale customers.
The company’s wireless network serves approximately 120 million mobile connections with 115 million postpaid subscribers. Verizon’s wireline business has undergone a period of secular decline due to wireless substitution and cable competition.
Verizon also provides converged communications, information, and entertainment services over America’s most advanced fiber-optic network and delivers integrated business solutions to customers worldwide.
AT&T
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The legacy telecommunications company has been undergoing lengthy restructuring, lowered the dividend, which is still a vast 6.66%, and sold off or merged underperforming assets. AT&T, Inc. (NYSE: T) provides worldwide telecommunications, media, and technology services. Its Communications segment offers wireless voice and data communications services. It sells handsets, wireless data cards, wireless computing devices, carrying cases, and hands-free devices through its company-owned stores, agents, and third-party retail stores.
AT&T provides data, voice, security, cloud solutions, outsourcing, managed and professional services, and customer premises equipment for multinational corporations, small and mid-sized businesses, and governmental and wholesale customers. In addition, this segment offers broadband fiber and legacy telephony voice communication services to residential customers.
AT&T markets its communications services and products under:
- AT&T,
- Cricket,
- AT&T PREPAID
- AT&T Fiber
The company’s Latin America segment provides wireless services in Mexico and video services in Latin America. This segment markets its services and products under the AT&T and Unefon brands.
Negative press earlier this year over the potential clean-up of lead landlines has caused the stock to be crushed; however, with massive cash flow and a solid customer base, this could be a gigantic total return win as the dividend remains safe.
Trust Financial
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This company was created through a merger of SunTrust Bank and BB&T in 2019 and paid a strong 6.25% dividend. Trust Financial Corporation (NYSE: TFC), a holding company, provides banking and trust services in the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States.
The company operates through three segments:
- Consumer Banking and Wealth,
- Corporate and Commercial Banking
- Insurance Holdings.
Its deposit products include non-interest-bearing checking, interest-bearing checking, savings, money market deposit accounts, certificates of deposit, and individual retirement accounts.
The company also provides
- Funding,
- Asset management
- Automobile lending
- Bankcard lending
- Consumer finance
- Home equity
- Mortgage lending
- Insurance, such as property, casualty, life, and health
- Employee benefits
- Workers’ compensation professional liability, surety coverage, title, and other insurance products
- Investment brokerage
- Mobile/online banking; payment
- Lease financing
- Small business lending
- Wealth management/private banking services
In addition, Truist offers
- Capital markets
- Institutional trust
- Insurance premium and commercial finance
- International banking,
- Leasing
- Merchant
- Commercial deposit and treasury
- Government Finance
- Commercial middle market lending
- Small business and student lending
- Floor plan and commercial mortgage lending
- Mortgage warehouse lending
- Private equity investment
- Real estate lending
- Supply chain financing services
Further, the company provides corporate and investment banking, retail and wholesale brokerage, securities underwriting, and investment advisory services.
KeyCorp
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This top regional player is very cheap at current levels for investors looking at financials and pays a hefty 6.10% dividend. KeyCorp. (NYSE: KEY) operates as the bank holding company for KeyBank National Association and provides deposit, lending, cash management, and investment services to individuals and small and medium-sized businesses under KeyBank National Association.
KeyCorp also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as
- Merger and acquisition advice
- Public and private debt and equity
- Syndications
- Derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under KeyBanc Capital Markets.
Simon Property Group
Source: JohnnyGreig / E+ via Getty Images
This leading company has been pounded and offered the best entry point since last year, offering patient investors a massive 5.81% dividend. Simon Property Group Inc. (NYSE: SPG) invests in the global real estate markets.
The company invests, owns, manages, and develops properties.
Simon Property Group primarily invests in
- Regional malls
- Premium outlets
- Mills
- Community/lifestyle centers
Through its subsidiary partnership, it owns or has an interest in about 230 properties in the US and Asia. The company also has a 28.9% interest in Klepierre, a European REIT with over 260 shopping centers in 13 countries.
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