Highest Dividend Yield

Q: What are high dividend yield stocks?

High dividend yield stocks are companies whose annual dividend payments represent a large percentage of their stock price. A stock paying $5 annually with a $100 share price has a 5% yield. Stocks yielding above 4% are generally considered high-yield. Common high yielders include REITs, utilities, MLPs, and mature companies with stable earnings that return most profits to shareholders.

Q: What is a good dividend yield?

A "good" yield balances income with sustainability. The S&P 500 average yield is about 1.3%. Yields of 3-5% from quality companies are considered strong. Yields above 6-8% warrant careful scrutiny — they may indicate elevated risk or a recent stock price decline. The ideal yield depends on your goals: retirees may prioritize higher yields, while growth investors may prefer lower yields from companies with faster dividend growth rates.

Q: Is a high dividend yield always good?

No. An unusually high yield can be a warning sign. If a stock's price drops 50% while the dividend remains unchanged, the yield doubles — but the underlying business may be in trouble. This is called a yield trap. Always check the payout ratio (dividends as a percentage of earnings or cash flow), debt levels, and recent earnings trends to assess whether the dividend is sustainable before investing based on yield alone.

Q: What sectors have the highest dividend yields?

REITs typically offer the highest yields (4-8%) because they must distribute 90% of taxable income. Utilities yield 3-5% due to regulated earnings and stable cash flows. Energy pipelines and MLPs often yield 5-8% from fee-based revenue. Telecommunications companies like AT&T and Verizon offer yields around 4-7%. Financial companies, particularly BDCs, can yield above 8%.

Q: How often are dividends paid?

Most U.S. stocks pay dividends quarterly (every three months). Some pay monthly (common among REITs and funds), semi-annually, or annually. The payment schedule includes key dates: the declaration date (when the dividend is announced), ex-dividend date (you must own before this date to receive the dividend), record date, and payment date. You can build a portfolio that generates income every month by combining stocks with different payment schedules.

Q: What is the ex-dividend date?

The ex-dividend date is the cutoff for dividend eligibility. To receive an upcoming dividend, you must purchase the stock at least one business day before the ex-date. On the ex-date, the stock typically opens lower by the dividend amount to reflect the payout. Buying on or after the ex-date means you will not receive the current dividend — you must wait for the next payment cycle.

Q: Should I reinvest high dividends or take cash?

It depends on your needs. Reinvesting dividends through a DRIP compounds returns significantly over time — historically, dividend reinvestment accounts for a large portion of total stock market returns. However, if you need current income for living expenses or want flexibility to allocate capital elsewhere, taking cash makes sense. In tax-advantaged accounts like IRAs, reinvesting is generally optimal since no immediate tax is triggered.

Top income-generating stocks ranked by annual dividend yield. Only companies over $1B market cap with yields capped at 25% to exclude anomalies.

200 stocks Updated Jun 25, 2026

5.92% Avg Dividend Yield

— Avg P/E Ratio

$11.46T Total Market Cap

+0.00% Avg Daily Change

High dividend yield stocks provide above-average income relative to their share price. These stocks are favored by income investors, retirees, and anyone seeking regular cash flow from their portfolio. The stocks on this list yield significantly more than the S&P 500 average of approximately 1.3%.

High-yield stocks are concentrated in sectors with stable cash flows — REITs, utilities, energy pipelines, telecommunications, and financial services. While a high yield is attractive, it's essential to evaluate sustainability. A yield that seems too good to be true may signal a stock whose price has fallen due to deteriorating fundamentals, making the dividend at risk of being cut.

This list ranks stocks by current dividend yield, showing only companies with consistent payment histories. Data includes prices, yields, P/E ratios, and payout ratios updated daily.

#	Symbol	Name	Price	Yield %	Annual Div	Payout %	Frequency	Market Cap
1	ZIM	Zim Integrated Shipping Serv	$24.34	19.19%	$4.28	107.60%	Quarterly	2.93B
2	FSK	Fs Kkr Capital Corp	$10.04	16.36%	$2.80	7,127.27%	Quarterly	2.88B
3	GSBD	Goldman Sachs Bdc Inc	$9.31	13.75%	$2.03	195.79%	Semi-annual	1.05B
4	OTF	Blue Owl Technology Finance	$10.22	13.13%	$0.85	54.66%	Quarterly	4.93B
5	BXSL	Blackstone Secured Lending F	$23.70	13.05%	$2.99	120.33%	Quarterly	5.49B
6	OCSL	Oaktree Specialty Lending Co	$11.59	12.94%	$1.74	436.91%	Quarterly	1.02B
7	MSDL	Morgan Stanley Direct Lendin	$15.30	12.36%	$2.11	150.73%	Quarterly	1.30B
8	TRIN	Trinity Capital Inc	$16.83	12.12%	$1.90	100.56%	Quarterly	1.51B
9	MCHB	Mechanics Bancorp-A	$15.67	11.92%	$0.40	18.27%	Quarterly	3.39B
10	OBDC	Blue Owl Capital Corp	$10.72	11.41%	$1.69	119.94%	Quarterly	5.39B
11	PRGO	Perrigo Co Plc	$10.25	11.32%	$1.16	0.00%	Quarterly	1.42B
12	GBDC	Golub Capital Bdc Inc	$12.35	10.69%	$1.56	97.76%	Quarterly	3.22B
13	ARCC	Ares Capital Corp	$17.85	10.65%	$1.82	97.31%	Quarterly	12.95B
14	CAG	Conagra Brands Inc	$13.61	10.61%	$1.40	58.07%	Quarterly	6.32B
15	NAT	Nordic American Tankers Ltd	$5.85	10.60%	$0.40	690.25%	Quarterly	1.24B
16	HTGC	Hercules Capital Inc	$15.15	10.33%	$1.85	95.95%	Quarterly	2.90B
17	HAFN	Hafnia Ltd	$7.43	10.30%	$0.40	58.48%	Quarterly	33.93B
18	WU	Western Union Co	$7.24	10.26%	$0.95	61.85%	Annual	2.22B
19	TU	Telus Corp	$11.23	10.20%	$1.07	146.27%	Quarterly	25.69B
20	TSLX	Sixth Street Specialty Lendi	$16.67	10.11%	$1.81	99.89%	Quarterly	1.58B
21	CSWC	Capital Southwest Corp	$22.96	10.10%	$2.59	130.30%	Quarterly	1.43B
22	FLNG	Flex Lng Ltd	$30.21	10.09%	$3.00	216.89%	Quarterly	1.58B
23	INSW	International Seaways Inc	$87.72	9.86%	$2.93	46.76%	Quarterly	4.18B
24	OWL	Blue Owl Capital Inc	$8.47	9.65%	$0.36	693.44%	Quarterly	14.86B
25	BWLP	Bw Lpg Ltd	$18.37	9.46%	$1.32	82.48%	Quarterly	26.85B
26	APAM	Artisan Partners Asset Ma -A	$34.85	9.45%	$3.19	88.56%	Quarterly	2.91B
27	NOG	Northern Oil And Gas Inc	$19.49	9.26%	$1.77	447.37%	Quarterly	2.11B
28	UPBD	Upbound Group Inc	$18.32	8.72%	$1.56	119.97%	Quarterly	1.07B
29	WEN	Wendy'S Co/The	$8.56	8.56%	$0.66	78.50%	Quarterly	1.30B
30	HESM	Hess Midstream Lp - Class A	$37.28	8.47%	$1.65	99.23%	Quarterly	7.59B
31	TRMD	Torm Plc-A	$28.70	8.40%	$2.01	70.00%	Quarterly	19.13B
32	SFL	Sfl Corp Ltd	$11.07	8.14%	$0.86	106.00%	Quarterly	1.56B
33	BRSL	Brightstar Lottery Plc	$10.82	8.13%	$3.96	527.40%	Quarterly	2.14B
34	MAIN	Main Street Capital Corp	$49.80	7.89%	$3.81	68.76%	Quarterly	4.74B
35	DHT	Dht Holdings Inc	$18.89	7.78%	$0.74	56.33%	Quarterly	3.04B
36	FRO	Frontline Plc	$40.72	7.65%	$0.93	54.62%	Quarterly	9.11B
37	RHI	Robert Half Inc	$30.08	7.47%	$2.34	179.13%	Quarterly	3.23B
38	CPB	The Campbell'S Company	$22.24	7.38%	$1.54	76.25%	Quarterly	6.31B
39	GIS	General Mills Inc	$34.80	7.30%	$2.43	58.33%	Quarterly	17.84B
40	OMF	Onemain Holdings Inc	$58.58	7.22%	$4.22	63.73%	Quarterly	6.72B
41	STLA	Stellantis Nv	$5.84	7.15%	$0.68	84.98%	Quarterly	20.95B
42	KHC	Kraft Heinz Co/The	$22.94	7.01%	$1.60	70.37%	Quarterly	27.06B
43	KNTK	Kinetik Holdings Inc	$48.15	6.96%	$3.13	280.52%	Quarterly	7.78B
44	TFSL	Tfs Financial Corp	$17.04	6.88%	$0.21	65.45%	Quarterly	4.60B
45	PFE	Pfizer Inc.	$24.04	6.82%	$1.72	125.75%	Quarterly	143.68B
46	NOMD	Nomad Foods Ltd	$10.65	6.79%	$0.61	66.79%	Quarterly	1.40B
47	WHR	Whirlpool Corp	$37.86	6.78%	$5.41	94.64%	Quarterly	2.52B
48	UPS	United Parcel Service-Cl B	$106.14	6.63%	$6.34	96.88%	Quarterly	89.13B
49	NSP	Insperity Inc	$36.22	6.63%	$2.40	97.80%	Quarterly	1.38B
50	GSL	Global Ship Lease Inc-Cl A	$37.89	6.60%	$2.40	20.55%	Quarterly	1.36B
51	FLO	Flowers Foods Inc	$7.78	6.43%	$0.96	249.69%	Quarterly	1.65B
52	AMCR	Amcor Plc	$41.71	6.33%	$2.25	165.36%	Quarterly	18.99B
53	CALM	Cal-Maine Foods Inc	$79.03	6.19%	$6.77	27.07%	Quarterly	3.68B
54	MO	Altria Group Inc	$72.07	6.13%	$4.14	100.19%	Quarterly	115.42B
55	MTN	Vail Resorts Inc	$144.24	6.13%	$8.95	117.20%	Quarterly	5.16B
56	UVV	Universal Corp/Va	$52.16	6.10%	$3.28	249.10%	Quarterly	1.30B
57	JHG	Janus Henderson Group Plc	$51.90	6.07%	$1.60	30.54%	Quarterly	7.99B
58	VZ	Verizon Communications	$45.68	5.95%	$2.72	66.85%	Quarterly	189.45B
59	GNK	Genco Shipping & Trading Ltd	$23.68	5.91%	$0.76	88.36%	Quarterly	1.03B
60	BTI	British American Tobacco p.l.c.	$61.55	5.90%	$2.39	67.47%	Quarterly	89.90B
61	CMCSA	Comcast Corp-Class A	$22.64	5.88%	$1.32	24.47%	Quarterly	80.13B
62	KARO	Karooooo Ltd	$47.32	5.81%	$0.59	0.00%	Quarterly	1.46B
63	FSUGY	Fortescue Ltd	$26.71	5.75%	$0.93	84.52%	Quarterly	64.56B
64	IMBBY	Imperial Brands PLC	$36.75	5.74%	$1.88	75.23%	Quarterly	21.70B
65	NP	Neptune Insurance Holdi-Cl A	$28.99	5.68%	$1.89	0.00%	Quarterly	4.04B
66	NEXA	Nexa Resources Sa	$12.84	5.65%	$0.36	35.94%	Quarterly	1.89B
67	CNXC	Concentrix Corp	$24.24	5.63%	$1.42	33.36%	Quarterly	1.53B
68	KEN	Kenon Holdings Ltd	$66.60	5.61%	$2.79	404.29%	Quarterly	3.57B
69	ENR	Energizer Holdings Inc	$21.59	5.58%	$1.24	36.44%	Quarterly	1.47B
70	NWBI	Northwest Bancshares Inc	$14.48	5.52%	$0.80	87.22%	Quarterly	2.12B
71	XRAY	Dentsply Sirona Inc	$10.52	5.50%	$0.64	0.00%	Quarterly	2.07B
72	O	Realty Income Corp	$61.99	5.40%	$3.20	275.92%	Quarterly	56.17B
73	PAX	Patria Investments Ltd-A	$10.76	5.39%	$0.60	111.08%	Quarterly	1.84B
74	WD	Walker & Dunlop Inc	$53.00	5.35%	$2.76	163.21%	Quarterly	1.78B
75	TPG	Tpg Inc	$38.74	5.33%	$3.31	665.83%	Quarterly	16.16B
76	BCE	Bce Inc	$23.20	5.31%	$2.36	33.70%	Quarterly	30.71B
77	PRU	Prudential Financial Inc	$106.26	5.26%	$5.48	53.86%	Quarterly	36.97B
78	DLX	Deluxe Corp	$22.94	5.23%	$1.24	67.24%	Quarterly	1.05B
79	SAFT	Safety Insurance Group Inc	$70.53	5.22%	$3.66	54.27%	Quarterly	1.04B
80	TEN	Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd	$38.29	5.22%	$2.00	37.38%	Quarterly	1.13B
81	ING	ING Groep N.V.	$31.04	5.20%	$1.29	61.38%	Quarterly	68.56B
82	CLX	Clorox Company	$95.38	5.18%	$4.88	74.32%	Quarterly	11.58B
83	FIBK	First Interstate Bancsys-A	$37.88	5.16%	$1.89	64.32%	Quarterly	3.54B
84	BBY	Best Buy Co Inc	$77.63	5.14%	$3.81	74.93%	Quarterly	15.75B
85	KMPR	Kemper Corp	$25.03	5.11%	$1.30	55.55%	Annual	1.47B
86	HPQ	Hp Inc	$23.29	5.11%	$1.17	43.02%	Quarterly	21.49B
87	SNY	Sanofi	$41.33	5.10%	$3.79	85.29%	Quarterly	97.65B
88	ACN	Accenture Plc-Cl A	$129.15	5.09%	$5.93	48.19%	Quarterly	78.57B
89	DBSDY	DBS Group Holdings Ltd	$205.57	5.08%	$2.87	74.55%	Quarterly	162.83B
90	ACI	Albertsons Cos Inc - Class A	$14.13	5.06%	$0.59	148.44%	Quarterly	6.65B
91	PZZA	Papa John'S Intl Inc	$36.35	5.05%	$1.87	200.26%	Quarterly	1.20B
92	T	AT&T Inc.	$22.37	5.04%	$1.15	37.26%	Quarterly	152.93B
93	ENB	Enbridge Inc	$55.29	5.03%	$3.96	115.33%	Quarterly	168.38B
94	OKE	Oneok Inc	$87.31	5.03%	$4.26	76.13%	Quarterly	53.57B
95	IP	International Paper Co	$38.30	5.02%	$2.23	115.44%	Quarterly	19.50B
96	LCII	Lci Industries	$94.14	5.00%	$4.59	60.58%	Quarterly	2.23B
97	KMB	Kimberly-Clark Corp	$106.73	4.99%	$5.00	82.14%	Quarterly	34.04B
98	AVA	Avista Corp	$41.13	4.95%	$1.96	82.38%	Quarterly	3.29B
99	VNOM	Viper Energy Inc-Cl A	$43.32	4.92%	$2.52	131.85%	Quarterly	15.51B
100	HRB	H&R Block Inc	$36.33	4.89%	$1.44	32.57%	Quarterly	4.36B

Frequently Asked Questions

What are high dividend yield stocks?

High dividend yield stocks are companies whose annual dividend payments represent a large percentage of their stock price. A stock paying $5 annually with a $100 share price has a 5% yield. Stocks yielding above 4% are generally considered high-yield. Common high yielders include REITs, utilities, MLPs, and mature companies with stable earnings that return most profits to shareholders.

What is a good dividend yield?

A "good" yield balances income with sustainability. The S&P 500 average yield is about 1.3%. Yields of 3-5% from quality companies are considered strong. Yields above 6-8% warrant careful scrutiny — they may indicate elevated risk or a recent stock price decline. The ideal yield depends on your goals: retirees may prioritize higher yields, while growth investors may prefer lower yields from companies with faster dividend growth rates.

Is a high dividend yield always good?

No. An unusually high yield can be a warning sign. If a stock's price drops 50% while the dividend remains unchanged, the yield doubles — but the underlying business may be in trouble. This is called a yield trap. Always check the payout ratio (dividends as a percentage of earnings or cash flow), debt levels, and recent earnings trends to assess whether the dividend is sustainable before investing based on yield alone.

What sectors have the highest dividend yields?

REITs typically offer the highest yields (4-8%) because they must distribute 90% of taxable income. Utilities yield 3-5% due to regulated earnings and stable cash flows. Energy pipelines and MLPs often yield 5-8% from fee-based revenue. Telecommunications companies like AT&T and Verizon offer yields around 4-7%. Financial companies, particularly BDCs, can yield above 8%.

How often are dividends paid?

Most U.S. stocks pay dividends quarterly (every three months). Some pay monthly (common among REITs and funds), semi-annually, or annually. The payment schedule includes key dates: the declaration date (when the dividend is announced), ex-dividend date (you must own before this date to receive the dividend), record date, and payment date. You can build a portfolio that generates income every month by combining stocks with different payment schedules.

What is the ex-dividend date?

The ex-dividend date is the cutoff for dividend eligibility. To receive an upcoming dividend, you must purchase the stock at least one business day before the ex-date. On the ex-date, the stock typically opens lower by the dividend amount to reflect the payout. Buying on or after the ex-date means you will not receive the current dividend — you must wait for the next payment cycle.

Should I reinvest high dividends or take cash?

It depends on your needs. Reinvesting dividends through a DRIP compounds returns significantly over time — historically, dividend reinvestment accounts for a large portion of total stock market returns. However, if you need current income for living expenses or want flexibility to allocate capital elsewhere, taking cash makes sense. In tax-advantaged accounts like IRAs, reinvesting is generally optimal since no immediate tax is triggered.