This Is All You Need to Earn Over $500 a Month From 3 Strong Buy Stocks

Investors love dividend stocks because they provide dependable 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. At 24/7 Wall St., we have focused on dividend stocks for 20 years because, despite the stock market’s ups and downs, many people need reliable passive income streams to supplement their income from employment or other sources such as Social Security and pensions.

We are often asked what it takes to earn $500 per month or $6,000 per year from a passive income portfolio. That answer may surprise many, especially since you can buy highly rated, economically sound companies with higher dividend yields that can help you reach a $500-per-month goal. When we screened our 24/7 Wall St. income stock database, three of our highest-rated stocks showed up, and with a $100,000 investment, investors can generate $6,000 per year in reliable passive income. All three companies are rated Buy by the top Wall Street firms we cover.

Why Do We Cover High-Yield 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%).

Here are three top stock ideas that can safely generate $500 per month in income over a year, with two paying quarterly and one monthly. At current market prices, these three stocks would generate $6,340 per year.

Energy Transfer

Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET | ET Price Prediction) is one of North America’s largest and most diversified midstream energy companies. This top master limited partnership is a solid option for investors seeking energy exposure and income, paying a 6.56% 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 blew out second-quarter earnings and appears poised to reach new highs.

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; the general partner interests, incentive distribution rights, and 28.5 million standard units of Sunoco (NYSE: SUN); and the public partner interests and 39.7 million standard units of USA Compression Partners (NYSE: USAC).

Stifel has a Buy rating on the shares, with a $25 target price.

$33,000 buys 1,520 shares, which pay $1.36 per share per year in dividends. That equals $2,067 per year or $172 per month.

Realty Income

Realty Income (NYSE:O) is a real estate investment trust that has paid monthly dividends consistently for years. This top-rated REIT owns over 15,500 properties with a 98.9% occupancy rate across 1,761 tenants in 92 industries, many in strong categories like grocery stores and dollar stores. Occupancy has never fallen below 96.6% this century, even during the Great Recession and the COVID-19 pandemic. This is an ideal stock for growth and income investors seeking a safer contrarian idea for the rest of 2026, with a 5.64% dividend yield.

This S&P 500 company acquires and manages freestanding commercial properties that generate rental revenue under long-term net lease agreements with its commercial clients. It is engaged in a single business activity: leasing property to clients, generally on a net basis. This business activity spans multiple geographic regions and includes a range of property types and clients across multiple industries.

Widely considered the gold standard of monthly dividend stocks, Realty Income has been paying dividends since 1969. As of early 2026, it has paid 667 consecutive monthly dividends and increased its dividend 132 times since its 1994 IPO.

The company owns or holds interests in approximately 15,621 properties in all 50 U.S. states and:

• United Kingdom
• France
• Germany
• Ireland
• Italy
• Portugal
• Spain

With clients operating in 89 industries, its property types include retail, industrial, gaming, and other categories such as agriculture and office. Its primary industry concentrations include:

• Grocery stores
• Convenience stores
• Dollar stores
• Drug stores
• Home improvement stores
• Restaurants
• Quick service

Royal Bank of Canada has an Outperform rating and a $70 target.

$33,000 buys 555 shares, which pay $3.35 per share per year in dividends. That equals $1,860 per year, or $155 per month, paid monthly.

VICI Properties

VICI Properties (NYSE: VICI) is a New York City-based REIT that specializes in casino and entertainment properties. It offers a stellar dividend yield of 7.51% and is one of Wall Street’s top picks in the net lease group. It is ideal for more conservative investors seeking gaming exposure and a substantial dividend. The stock is frequently flagged, alongside other stocks in this post, in dividend screens as a “safer” S&P 500 dividend dog with an attractive yield backed by long-term triple-net leases.

VICI Properties has one of the largest portfolios of market-leading gaming, hospitality, and entertainment destinations, including three iconic entertainment facilities on the Las Vegas Strip:

• Caesars Palace Las Vegas
• MGM Grand
• Venetian Resort Las Vegas

VICI Properties owns 93 experiential assets across a geographically diverse portfolio of 54 gaming properties and 39 other experiential properties across the United States and Canada. The portfolio comprises about 127 million square feet and includes about 60,300 hotel rooms, plus over 500 restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and sportsbooks. Gaming revenue has proven remarkably resilient in recent downturns, and its triple-net lease structure means it collects rent regardless of swings in tenant profitability.

The company has a growing array of real estate and financing partnerships with leading operators in other experiential sectors, including:

• Bowlero
• Cabot
• Canyon Ranch
• Chelsea Piers
• Great Wolf Resorts
• Homefield
• Kalahari Resorts

VICI Properties also owns four championship golf courses and 33 acres of undeveloped and underdeveloped land adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip.

$33,000 buys 1,335 shares, which pay $1.81 per share per year in dividends. That equals $2,415 per year, or $201 per month.

Barclays has an Overweight rating with a $31 price objective.

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