Dividend Kings are companies that have increased their dividends for 50 or more consecutive years. To many income investors, reliable dividend payments that increase over time sound like a done deal.
However, just because a stock is a Dividend King does not mean it’s an automatic buy. We have to consider what experts think about them—because, more often than not, they know what they’re talking about and have access to data that might be challenging for the regular investor to access.
So, to that end, here’s a quick study on which Dividend Kings have Wall Street’s approval so that you can buy into stocks that have a big chance of becoming long-term winners.
How I Screened For The Following Stocks
As is my normal routine, I started this analysis with Barchart’s Watchlist feature, where I have a pre-prepared Dividend Kings list. The watchlist is comprehensive on its own, and as you can see, I clicked on the “Div Yield” column header and arranged the list from highest to lowest yields.
High yields don't necessarily mean good things. It often means the stock is depressed, and the company needs to keep the dividend high to prevent a further selloff. In this list, I see the three highest-yielding Dividend Kings today are Altria Group, Universal Corp, and Northwest Natural Gas Co.
However, if you consider analyst ratings, you'll find they aren't exactly the type of results that match the “stocks that Wall Street loves” line in my title. Indeed, the highest eight does not even break into an average rating of 4 based on analyst reviews.
So, the next step is to filter out the low-rated Kings from the results. To do that, I clicked the “Screen” button on the upper right side of the results table and was brought to Barchart’s Stock Screener page. Here, I can add different filters to refine my search, so I used the following:
- Current Analyst Ratings: Set between 4 (high end of moderate buy) to 5 (strong buy). With this, I can get the stocks with high ratings, which I want. However, only high ratings are not enough to convince me that a stock is worth looking into, so I used the next filter.
- Number of Analysts: Set to 16 or more analysts. Normally, I screen for stocks that have 8 or more analysts covering them. But since we’re looking for the top ones based on Wall Street ratings, I filtered out stocks with scores from less than 16 firms. That way, I can say with confidence—if not outright certainty—that analysts love these stocks.
- Annual Dividend Yields: It wouldn’t be a highest-yielding Kings list without yields appearing on the search. As usual, I intentionally left this blank so that it will appear on the results page.
After clicking on “See Results,” I got 15 hits.
Then, I clicked the “Div Yield” header to arrange the stocks from highest to lowest dividend yields. Finally, I took the top three and will discuss them here. So, let’s start with number one:
Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRT)
Federal Realty Investment Trust has appeared a few times in my many Dividend Kings lists, and seeing it here at number one is not surprising at all. With over 60 years operating as a REIT and key properties in some of the biggest real estate markets in the US, Federal Realty has a lot going for it.
But let’s look at what FRT stock offers for income investors. The company has paid $1.09 per share quarterly for the last two quarters of 2024, which brings its forward rate to $4.36, translating to a 3.93% yield.
However, Federal Reality often announces dividend increases by the third quarter. So, if history is to repeat itself (and it does), I'd expect the next quarterly payout to be $1.10 or $1.11. Until interest rates come down, I doubt they'll add more than a penny or two to the quarterly payout. Either way, if/when Federal Realty increases its dividend, it will be its 57th consecutive dividend increase.
With an average rating of 4.24 from 17 analysts and its price recently breaking through its latest resistance level, FRT stock is looking increasingly promising.
Abbvie Inc (ABBV)
Abbvie, one of the world's biggest and most recognizable pharmaceutical companies, takes our number two spot. The company develops and distributes different drug products for various medical conditions.
Its main product—one of the world's best-selling medications and the company’s biggest revenue contributor—is Humira, a drug used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other similar conditions. However, the company’s exclusivity patent for the superstar drug expired last year.
But you don’t get as big as Abbvie without having more than one ace up your sleeve. Abbvie has multiple products addressing more than 75 medical conditions across different age groups, ensuring the company’s operational longetivity.
In terms of dividends, Abbvie has longevity down to a T. The company has increased payouts for 52 years since 1972. It pays $1.55 per share quarterly, or $6.20 annually, which translates to a 3.57% yield. Abbvie is also the highest-rated Dividend King on this list, with a consensus 4.27 average score from 22 analysts.
Pepsico Inc (PEP)
While modern meme culture likes to poke fun at Pepsico for being the underdog to Coca-Cola, that doesn’t diminish the fact that everybody knows what Pepsi products are.
The company operates like its rival, producing and distributing beverages through company-owned plants and third-party distributors. However, it is more diversified than Coca-Cola, with Pepsico offering both food and drink products like Lay’s chips, Quaker, Gatorade Sports Drinks, Doritos, and Cheetos—all known and loved worldwide.
In 2024, Pepsico raised its quarterly dividend for the 52nd consecutive year to $1.355 per share. That translates to a $5.42 annual rate and a 3.23% yield. Given the company’s strong brand presence and diversified portfolio, analysts rate PEP stock a 4.11 average score.
Final Thoughts
It pays to invest in quality—and Dividend Kings are the very definition of quality. These companies have over 50 years of consecutive dividend increases, strong market presence, mature business, steady cash flow, and an unquestionable commitment to giving back to investors.
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