For younger investors or those on a tight budget, investing in stocks to generate consistent passive income can be daunting because many top dividend stocks trade at prices ranging from $25 to over $100 per share. Realizing a significant return on investment can be challenging with a small investing capital base of $1,000. When building a portfolio of stocks, the most critical ingredient for success is getting started early. Regardless of how much money you begin with, if you continue to add to the pot and reinvest your dividends to buy more shares, there is a good chance for long-term success.
Investors seeking defensive companies that pay substantial dividends are drawn to the Dividend Aristocrats, and with good reason. The 69 companies that made the cut for the 2025 S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats list have increased their dividends (not just maintained the same level) for 25 consecutive years. But the requirements go even further, with the following attributes also mandatory for membership on the aristocrats list:
- Companies must be worth at least $3 billion for each quarterly rebalancing.
- Their average daily volume must be 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 2025 Dividend Aristocrats to identify the companies that Wall Street endorses for passive income investors, and these are three of the best stocks to buy now with $1,000 as they all trade under the $25 level. Passive income is a steady stream of unearned income that does not require active traditional work. Ideas for earning passive income include investments, real estate, and side hustles.
Why do we cover the Dividend Aristocrats?
S&P 500 companies that have paid and raised their dividends for 25 years or longer are the types that growth and income investors want to buy and hold in their stock portfolios for the long term. These stocks are mostly conservative, and should we see a dramatic market correction, they will likely keep their ground much better than volatile technology names.
Amcor
This company is an excellent idea as its products are always in demand. Amcor PLC (NYSE: AMCR) is engaged in packaging solutions for consumer and healthcare products. The company develops sustainable packaging in flexible and rigid formats across multiple materials.
The company operates through two segments:
The Flexibles segment manufactures flexible and film packaging for the food and beverage, medical and pharmaceutical, fresh produce, snack food, personal care, and other industries.
The Rigid Packaging segment manufactures rigid containers for a wide range of beverage and food products, including:
- Carbonated soft drinks
- Water
- Juices
- Sports drinks
- Milk-based beverages
- Spirits and wine
- Sauces
- Dressings
- Spreads and personal care items
- Plastic caps for a wide variety of applications
The company’s subsidiaries include Amcor Flexibles North America, Inc., Amcor UK Finance plc, and Amcor Finance (USA), Inc.
Franklin Resources
Franklin Resources Inc. (NYSE: BEN), more commonly known as Franklin Templeton, is one of the world’s largest investment management firms. This company is a mutual fund powerhouse that pays a safe dividend. It 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 United States, an advantage given the maturing U.S. 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 was a strong tailwind for the company, but the recent sell-off has made the shares look very cheap. While withdrawals from baby boomers may be a concern, the path forward in 2025 also looks solid as the shares have rebounded from the April lows.
Kenvue
Kenvue Inc. (NYSE: KVUE) is an American consumer health company. Spun off from Johnson & Johnson Inc. (NYSE: JNJ) recently, this potential total return home run pays a solid and dependable dividend.
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 under these brands:
- Tylenol
- Nicorette
- Zyrtec
The Skin Health and Beauty segment provides face and body care, hair care, sun care, and other products under these brands:
- Neutrogena
- Aveeno
- OGX
The Essential Health segment offers oral and baby, women’s health, and wound care products under these brands:
- Listerine
- Johnson’s
- Band-Aid
- Stayfree
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