Everyone likes a sale, and buying a discounted stock with good growth potential is no different. You're getting quality at a lower price, and that can translate into greater profits later on.
Now add into the mix a good, cheap company that also pays a healthy dividend, and you have a situation where investors are getting an immediate return on their investment while waiting for the market to awaken to its true valuation.
I think the two dividend stocks on sale below fit the bill nicely.
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Clorox
It's easy to see why Clorox (CLX 1.32%) has excelled during the worldwide pandemic. With a hypersensitive focus on cleanliness and sanitation, consumers found Clorox bleach and sanitizing wipes in short supply. Because people were also forced to stay at home, its Kingsford charcoal division also boomed as more consumers ate at home.
Now that the lingering effects of the COVID-19 outbreak are starting to fade in the U.S. and the economy is opening up, meaning more people will be going out to eat, Clorox stock has lost 26% of its value from the highs it hit earlier this year.
That myopia, though, presents investors with an excellent opportunity to get into this consumer products giant at a good price while waiting for the market to realize it still has plenty of potential.
In 2019, Clorox launched what it called its IGNITE strategy to develop new products that would capitalize on innovative consumer trends to drive annual sales growth of between 2% and 4%. This would help improve margins while increasing free cash flow as a percentage of revenue by 11% to 13%.
Clorox's portfolio of well-known consumer products includes Pine-Sol, Formula 409, Brita, Liquid-Plumr, and more, which generate 80% of its revenue. The IGNITE strategy leans into that brand name base by looking at markets where it feels it should win, but avoids competing on price that would undermine profit margins. It maintains it can lead by being a premium brand.
It will have to pick its battles carefully, as consumers remain price-sensitive after a tumultuous year, but it is a clearly defined path to growth that should reward investors.
Speaking of rewards, Clorox has long been a dividend-paying standout for well over 50 years. It has raised its payout each and every year since 1977, putting it in the select group of stocks known as Dividend Aristocrats.
Kraft Heinz
Kraft Heinz (KHC 0.55%) doesn't have the same dividend track record as Clorox, but makes up for it with a payout currently yielding 3.6% annually. At the same time, the packaged foods giant provides investors with the opportunity to buy into a turnaround story that still has legs to run.
Investors might actually find that surprising, considering Kraft Heinz stock is up 27% in 2021 and is 43% higher over the past year. But the company continues to narrow its focus to its core products while selling off ancillary businesses, such as it did last year when it sold off certain parts of its cheese business for $3.2 billion, and earlier this year when it said it would sell its Planters nuts business for $3.4 billion.
CEO Miguel Patricio said at the time that the sale enables Kraft Heinz "to sharpen our focus on areas with greater growth prospects and competitive advantage for our powerhouse brands," and gives investors the hope there will be more deals in the coming year to whittle that portfolio down further.
That promises to put more financial resources at its disposal while cutting costs for the packaged foods company. That could be critical at a time when many businesses are coping with commodity inflation that would otherwise eat at profit margins.
Kraft Heinz is an investment predicated on it right-sizing itself for future growth, despite all the growth investors have already enjoyed. Among those investors, of course, is Warren Buffett, whose Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A -0.60%) (BRK.B -0.48%) made an ill-timed investment in the stock, but continues to own a large stake in it.
At just 16 times next year's estimated earnings, Kraft Heinz represents a unique investment opportunity in a consumer staples stock that could pay dividends for years to come.
