Any time is a great time to buy solid dividend stocks. The trick, of course, is figuring out which companies' payouts will be steady and reliable.
To aid you in your search for such stocks, here's a trio of companies that have strong underlying businesses and high-yielding dividends that should keep growing for a long time to come.
Image source: Getty Images.
1. AbbVie
If you're looking for steadily increasing dividends, AbbVie (ABBV -1.03%) should definitely be on your list. It's a Dividend Aristocrat with a track record of 49 consecutive years of payout hikes. And the drugmaker's dividend yield -- 4.8% at current share prices -- is also quite attractive.
Some investors might be leery of AbbVie because the company's top-selling product, Humira, will lose patent protection in the U.S. in 2023. But will a rapid decline of that drug's sales once generic versions hit the market put AbbVie's dividend in jeopardy? Not at all.
The company does expect that its overall revenue will decline in 2023. However, it anticipates that will be followed by a modest uptick in 2024 and a return to strong revenue growth throughout the rest of the decade.
That forecast seems attainable. AbbVie already has two new autoimmune disease drugs on the market, Rinvoq and Skyrizi, that should take the baton from Humira. It also has other products that should generate plenty of revenue growth, notably including its blood cancer drugs Imbruvica and Venclexta.
2. Enterprise Products Partners
Enterprise Products Partners (EPD 0.48%) offers the kind of dividend that makes income investors' mouths water. Its yield currently sits north of 7.7%. And while the company isn't a Dividend Aristocrat like AbbVie yet, it has boosted its distribution for 22 years in a row.
You might be hesitant about investing in oil stocks considering the volatility of the energy sector. However, as a midstream leader focused on transporting, processing, and storing natural gas and oil, Enterprise Products Partners has some degree of cushion against major swings in commodity prices.
To be sure, Enterprise Products Partners faced major headwinds in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the company anticipates a major rebound this year as vaccines help ease worries about the coronavirus and allow economic activity to further recover.
The company is also positioning itself for growth. Enterprise Products Partners is developing projects valued at $3.6 billion that will go into operation over the next couple of years. Investors should be able to count on its distributions continuing to grow.
3. Pfizer
One of the top companies helping the global economy bounce back is Pfizer (PFE -0.19%). BNT162b2, the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and its partner BioNTech, has already been administered to millions of people around the world.
Pfizer also offers one of the most attractive dividends in the healthcare sector. It currently yields close to 4.5%, and the company has increased its payout every year since 2009.
Investors should be aware, though, that Pfizer will soon cut its dividend. But they also need to recognize that it's nothing to worry about. The drugmaker spun off its Upjohn unit and merged it with Mylan in November 2020 to form a new entity, Viatris. When Viatris declares its first dividend, Pfizer will lower its payout accordingly. However, Pfizer's dividend should still be one that most investors will like.
Investors should also like Pfizer's growth prospects. The divestiture of Upjohn removed several older drugs with declining sales from the company's lineup. BNT162b2 will also be a huge winner -- the coronavirus vaccine is expected to generate sales this year of well over $18 billion. Pfizer's dividend yield might slip somewhat in the near future, but its growth should more than make up for the decrease.
