Some income investors might view the stock market's recent rebound with a healthy dose of skepticism. And they could be wise to do so. There's no guarantee that happy days are here again.
However, the volatility doesn't have to prevent income investors from meeting their goals. Want safe dividend income in 2025 and beyond? Invest in these three ultra-high-yield stocks.
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1. Altria Group
Altria Group (MO 1.26%) offers a juicy forward dividend yield of 6.81%. Ultra-high yields are nothing new for the company. Investors have also been able to count on steady dividend increases for 55 consecutive years, making the company a member of the elite group of stocks known as Dividend Kings.
NYSE: MO
Key Data Points
Granted, some will find Altria's business unsavory. The company sells tobacco products, including cigarettes, cigars, and moist smokeless tobacco. It also owns a significant stake in Canadian cannabis producer Cronos Group.
But Altria has made a concerted effort to move forward with its vision of "a smoke-free future." It acquired oral nicotine pouch maker Helix and vaping products company NJOY as part of this strategy. Altria also formed a joint venture with a subsidiary of Japan Tobacco to develop heated tobacco sticks.
Although the company's business is in transition, it remains relatively steady. Altria expects adjusted earnings-per-share growth of between 2% and 5% in 2025. I think income investors should be in store for yet another dividend hike later this year.
2. Enterprise Products Partners
You can make an even higher annual income from investing in Enterprise Products Partners (EPD 1.51%). This limited partnership (LP) pays a forward distribution yield of 7.13%. Enterprise has also increased its distribution for 26 consecutive years.
NYSE: EPD
Key Data Points
Don't think just because Enterprise Products Partners is in the energy sector that its business is inherently volatile. The LP operates over 50,000 miles of pipelines that transport crude oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and other hydrocarbons across the U.S. It also owns natural gas processing trains, liquids storage facilities, fractionators, and other midstream energy assets. Enterprise's financial stability doesn't hinge on fluctuations in commodity prices.
The company has generated double-digit percentage returns on invested capital every year since 2005. It has also delivered strong cash flow per unit for two decades, even during tumultuous periods, including the financial crisis of 2007 through 2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Enterprise Products Partners is likely to provide capital appreciation in addition to income over the next decade. The demand for NGLs (which make up roughly 55% of the LP's gross operating margin) should especially grow. Enterprise is well-prepared for this growth, with around $6 billion of capital projects scheduled to come online in 2025.
3. Verizon Communications
Verizon Communications (VZ +0.27%) is another great ultra-high-yield pick for income investors right now, in my view. The telecommunications giant's forward dividend yield stands at 6.22%. Verizon has increased its dividend for 18 consecutive years.
NYSE: VZ
Key Data Points
Probably the best way to evaluate the safety of a dividend is to look at a company's free cash flow. Verizon's free cash flow jumped 33% year over year in the first quarter of 2025 to $3.6 billion. It expects free cash flow of between $17.5 billion and $18.5 billion for the full year. To put that range in context, the company paid $11.2 billion in dividends last year. The bottom line: Verizon remains in a strong position to keep the dividends flowing and growing.
This optimism seems to be backed up by Verizon's latest quarterly update. The company delivered industry-leading wireless service revenue. It reported the most wireless retail core prepaid net additions since the acquisition of TracFone in 2021. Verizon also continued to expand its broadband market share.
More growth should be on the way thanks to business development. Verizon hopes to close on its pending acquisition of Frontier Communications in the first quarter of 2026.
