Some companies offer investors the best of both worlds by paying high-yielding dividends, enabling investors to collect lucrative passive-income streams. Additionally, these companies are growing their earnings at healthy rates, which enables them to increase their dividends and the value of their stock prices. This combination of income and growth can add up to robust total returns.
Brookfield Infrastructure (BIPC 0.32%)(BIP +0.26%), Enterprise Products Partners (EPD +0.58%), and Realty Income (O +0.64%) currently stand out for their high yields and sustainable earnings growth. Their proven abilities to deliver both dividend income and capital appreciation through consistent earnings growth makes them my top high-yielding dividend stocks to buy right now.
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Fading headwinds could fuel a growth acceleration
Brookfield Infrastructure has an excellent track record of delivering growth and income. The global infrastructure operator has grown its funds from operations (FFO) per share at a 14% compound annual rate since its formation in 2008. That has enabled the company to increase its high-yielding dividend (3.9% current yield) at a 9% compound annual rate during that period.
The company's growth rate has slowed a little bit over the past five years (10% compound annual FFO per-share growth) due to headwinds from interest rates and foreign-exchange fluctuations. However, the company believes it's on the cusp of a growth reacceleration. It currently has $8 billion in organic expansion projects in its backlog (four times more than a few years ago) and has already secured $2.1 billion in new acquisitions this year.
Additionally, the company's currency and interest-rate headwinds are fading, while strong growth tailwinds from artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure are emerging. As a result, it could deliver faster FFO per-share growth, dividend increases toward the high-end of its 5% to 9% annual target range, and even more robust total returns in the future.
NYSE: BIPC
Key Data Points
The coming growth wave
Enterprise Products Partners has been a steady grower throughout its history. The master limited partnership (MLP), which sends investors a Schedule K-1 Federal Tax Form each year, has increased its 7%-yielding distribution for 27 straight years (every year since its initial public offering). The company is growing at a solid rate, delivering a 7% increase in distributable cash flow during the second quarter, which has enabled it to raise its already lucrative distribution by 4.3% over the past year.
The MLP is also on the brink of a major growth wave. Enterprise Products Partners expects to complete $6 billion of major growth capital projects by the end of this year. Additionally, it recently closed the $580 million acquisition of a natural gas gathering affiliate from Occidental Petroleum. These new investments should fuel a major uptick in its cash flow next year.
NYSE: EPD
Key Data Points
Additionally, Enterprise Products Partners expects to spend another $2 billion to $2.2 billion in 2026 to complete construction on several additional growth capital projects, which should all enter service by the end of next year. These additional expansions will give the company more fuel to continue growing its cash flow and increasing its distribution. Meanwhile, with the strongest financial profile in the midstream sector, Enterprise has the financial capacity to continue approving new expansion projects and making additional accretive acquisitions.
Falling rates should drive faster growth
Realty Income is one of the most consistent high-yielding dividend stocks you'll find. The real estate investment trust (REIT) has increased its dividend every single year since its public market listing in 1994. Overall, it has raised its monthly dividend payment 132 times, growing it at a 4.2% compound annual rate during that period.
NYSE: O
Key Data Points
The REIT has grown its FFO per share at a more than 5% average annual rate over the past 30 years. Realty Income has only failed to deliver positive FFO per-share growth once during that period (2009). However, when adding in its high-yielding dividend (6% historical average yield and more than 5% currently), it has delivered a positive total operational return (FFO growth plus dividend yield) every single year for the past three decades.
Realty Income has grown its FFO per share a little slower in more recent years due to the impact of higher interest rates. However, with the Federal Reserve now cutting rates, this headwind is fading. It will lower the REIT's borrowing costs and boost its share price, which should enable it to ramp up its acquisition volume to grow its FFO at a faster rate in the future.
High income and total returns
Brookfield Infrastructure, Enterprise Products Partners, and Realty Income provide high dividend yields, track records of growing those payouts, and the potential for continued price appreciation. These characteristics make them my top three high-yield stocks to buy right now for income and high total return potential.
