Could These Top Dividend Stocks Be A Good Hedge For Your Portfolio Right Now?
Despite the solid figures so far this earnings season, investors are beginning the week wondering why stocks are down. With rising coronavirus fears and inflation scares plenty, dividend stocks could be a go-to in the stock market now. For the most part, this would be the case amidst times of uncertainty and market volatility. That is because dividend stocks, as the name suggests, offer investors more consistent forms of income in dividends. Now, as the broader market retreats from its recent highs, I could see investors looking for the top dividend stocks to invest in.
Overall, dividend stocks do not often provide the most explosive gains. As mentioned earlier, their lack of exciting growth is compensated for with consistent returns. Because of this, some of the top names in this sector of the stock market today include industry giants. For instance, we could look at consumer staples like General Mills (NYSE: GIS) and Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ: KHC). Not only do they provide dividends, but their products would also be in demand regardless of pandemic conditions. If anything, some would argue that times like this would incentivize investors to diversify their portfolios. While growth names take a breather, dividend stocks could be worth considering. Should you share the same sentiment, here are five to consider now.
Top Dividend Stocks To Buy [Or Sell] This Week
- General Electric Company (NYSE: GE)
- Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM)
- McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD)
- Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE: BEP)
- Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO)
General Electric Company
General Electric (GE) is a multinational conglomerate that is headquartered in Boston. The company operates mainly through its Energy, Health Care, and Aviation segments. It continues to deliver cutting-edge technology solutions to countries all around the world. Notably, GE is strategically focused on playing an essential role in helping the global energy transition and building decarbonization solutions for companies and countries. GE stock closed Monday’s trading session at $12.00 per share and is up by over 70% in the past year.
Recently, the company announced that it will partner with the government of Quebec, Canada for the expansion of its wind turbine blade facility there. The parties involved will jointly invest in the expansion of the facility owned by LM Wind Power, a GE Renewable Energy business. The investments will enable the company to expand its existing facility to meet the growing demand for renewable energy across North America. Ultimately, this expansion will result in the creation of 200 skilled jobs, providing clear evidence of how support for renewable energy can yield long-term economic growth. All things considered, will you buy GE stock?
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Exxon Mobil Corporation
Exxon Mobil is an oil and gas corporation that is also one of the world’s largest publicly traded energy providers. The company, in essence, develops technologies to help meet the world’s growing needs for energy and high-quality chemical products. Impressively, it is also one of the largest refiners and marketers of petroleum products. XOM stock currently trades at $55.35 a share as of Monday’s closing bell. The company’s latest dividend payment was at a rate of $0.87 per share.
Last Friday, the company signed a memorandum of understanding to participate in a recently announced Acorn carbon capture and storage project (CCS) in Scotland. The project plans to capture and store approximately 5-6 million tons of CO2 per year by 2030.
Exxon also said it has joined NECCUS, an alliance of industry, government, and academic experts committed to reducing carbon emissions from industrial facilities in Scotland. Through this alliance, Exxon will be able to draw on its extensive global experience with CCS technology. Could other governments follow suit in engaging the company in the months to come? With that in mind, will you consider investing in XOM stock?
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McDonald’s Corporation
Next on this list is McDonald’s. The company is a fast-food chain that is also one of the largest restaurant chains by revenue. It serves over 60 million customers every day in over 100 countries. McDonald’s boasts over 39,000 locations and approximately 93% of its restaurants are owned and operated by independent local business owners. MCD stock currently trades at $229.26 at the end of Monday’s trading day.
The company reported its first-quarter financials in April. Firstly, it posted a revenue of $5.124 billion, an increase of 9% year-over-year. Secondly, net income for the quarter was $1.537 billion, an impressive 39% increase year-over-year. It also reported diluted earnings per share of $2.05 for the quarter. The company says that its global comparable sales and revenues have surpassed pre-pandemic levels. With such impressive financials, will you consider buying MCD stock right now?
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Brookfield Renewable Partners
Brookfield Renewable Partners (BEP) is a renewable energy company that owns and operates renewable power assets. In brief, it operates one of the world’s largest publicly traded, pure-play renewable power platforms. Its portfolio consists of wind, solar, and hydroelectric facilities all over the world. Combined, it has a total of approximately 21,000 megawatts of installed capacity and has an approximately 27,000-megawatt development pipeline. BEP stock ended Monday’s trading day at $36.59 a share. The company’s latest dividend was $0.303 per share and was paid out on June 30, 2021.
With the company looking to report its earnings on August 5 before the opening bell, BEP stock could be on investors’ radars. If anything, BEP is also kicking into high gear on the operational front now. As of July 8, the company is now working with Trane Technologies (NYSE: TT), a global climate innovator. The duo is now providing “decarbonization-as-a-service” for the commercial, public, and industrial sectors. In detail, this would see energy-efficient retrofits and refinements for energy infrastructure in buildings. According to CEO of Brookfield Renewable Distributed Generation, Valerie Hannah, BEP is looking at a $600 billion market opportunity here. In that case, would you consider BEP stock a top buy now?
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Coca-Cola Company
Following that, we will be taking a look at the Coca-Cola Company. Now, most would be familiar with the company’s array of beverage brands in the market today. In detail, the company has and continues to make sizable expansions to its flagship beverage offerings. While consumers are well aware of its Fanta, Sprite, and Coca-Cola brands, Coca-Cola also offers sports, coffee, tea, and nutritional drinks as well. For a sense of scale, Coca-Cola’s offerings are now sold in over 200 countries and territories. KO stock now trades at $55.73 a share as of Monday’s closing bell.
In terms of dividends, the company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per common share. On top of that, Coca-Cola is going to report its earnings this Thursday. According to consensus estimates, the company could see earnings per share of $0.55 on revenue of $9.25 billion. This would mark sizable year-over-year increases of 31% and 29% respectively. Should this be the case, would you consider KO stock a top dividend stock to invest in?
