Income seekers might want to check out the impressive dividend yields on these beaten-down names
Yes, the market has taken on a little water over the past week, and it looks like stocks have yet to hit their ultimate bottom.
There’s an upside to the current bout of market misery, however — the yields on dividend stocks have been ratcheted up, even if only because stock prices have been whittled down.
That’s why rather than fretting over the implosion, now’s the time for income investors to start looking for names with a strong dividend yield. After all, for quality dividend stocks, the payout can be perpetual; this market blip will be over before some investors even realize it’s started.
There are a handful of dividend stocks with a particularly attractive dividend yield right now, thanks to the recent lull. In no particular order …
Buy-and-Hold-Forever Dividend Stocks – Medical Properties Trust (MPW)
Dividend Yield: 6.3%
While it still might be an unpopular program among the public, there have been some upsides to the advent of Obamacare — a new swath of newly insured people means more folks are using their health insurance, and hospitals are seeing few charge-offs. It might even mean demand grows to the point where the healthcare industry needs more locales — hospitals, to be specific.
That plays right into the hands of healthcare facility real estate investment trust Medical Properties Trust (MPW). The current dividend yield for Medical Properties Trust is a healthy 6.3%, but given the situation at hand, odds are good the payout could increase significantly in the foreseeable future.
And yet somehow, MPW continues to be one of the market’s most overlooked dividend stocks.
Buy-and-Hold-Forever Dividend Stocks – R.R. Donnelley & Sons (RRD)
Dividend Yield: 6.2%
Add R.R. Donnelley & Sons (RRD) to the list of good-looking dividend stocks right now, too. RRD presently is paying out 6.2%.
It’s tough to imagine any promotional printing and publicity name paying a dividend, let alone a strong one. R.R. Donnelley & Sons is the exception to that norm, however. In fact, it might be close to improving its payout. The quarterly dividend of 26 cents per share hasn’t budged since 2004, but with a swing back to profitability last year in the shadow of several years of sales growth, the company might be ready to up its payout.
Buy-and-Hold-Forever Dividend Stocks – StoneMor Partners, LP (STON)
Distribution Yield: 10.3%
How does the saying go? There’s nothing certain in this world besides death and taxes?
Not that it’s a something to make light of, but if it’s an opportunity, why not capitalize on the former by investing in a cemetery company?
Yes, they’re out there, and StoneMor Partners, LP (STON) is one of the best in the bunch. In fact, its distribution yield (essentially, the MLP equivalent of a dividend yield) of 10.3% makes it one of the top dividend stocks among any industry. Better still, StoneMor has a solid history of increased payouts. For perspective, the quarterly payout was 46 cents per share in 2005, and now it’s 61 cents.
That’s a 32% improvement in STON’s distribution in less than 10 years, and the company has never failed to pay one.
Buy-and-Hold-Forever Dividend Stocks – AmeriGas Partners, LP (APU)
Distribution Yield: 8%
While the price of natural gas has been all over the map over the past few years, that volatility has only been a problem for the miners and the explorers.
For the middlemen like AmeriGas Partners, LP (APU) — which simply get gas from point A to point B — business has been surprisingly consistent. Indeed, AmeriGas Partners has been able to up its distribution for nine straight years.
With a current dividend yield of 8% and a strong history of increased distributions, APU stock belongs on any list of dividend stocks to consider.
Buy-and-Hold-Forever Dividend Stocks – Teekay LNG Partners, LP (TGP)
Distribution Yield: 6.8%
Most maritime shipping stocks have struggled since 2008. Teekay LNG Partners L.P. (TGP) has been a noteworthy exception to that norm.
Indeed, Teekay LNG Partners has logged eight straight years of revenue growth, and seven straight years of income growth. Although TGP stock has fallen more than 11% since announcing a secondary offering, its plans for the money are an investment with a solid ROI — China’s budding demand for liquefied natural gas stemming from its effort to wean itself off of coal.
Whatever the cause, what’s apt to be a short-term dip for the stock has — for the time being, anyway — beefed up this ticker’s distribution yield to a healthy 6.8%. It’s a payout not too many other (sustainable) dividend stocks can top.
As of this writing, James Brumley did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
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