Dividend stocks are favored by plenty of investors — and why not? No matter where you are on your investing journey, you could use some solid dividend stocks in your portfolio.
If you’re a newer investor and still have years until retirement, then owning stocks that pay a consistent dividend is a great way to turbocharge your returns. Simply reinvest your quarterly or monthly payout into your portfolio and take advantage of the magic of compounded returns.
And if you’re in retirement, dividend stocks provide a reliable income stream that you can use for monthly bills, all the while reducing the amount that you’re withdrawing from your account for basic living expenses. Dividend stocks can be the secret ingredient to making your retirement years happy and prosperous.
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Of course, finding the best dividend stocks can sometimes be challenging. For this exercise, I used a stock screener to help me narrow the field. Because I wanted established companies, I limited the screen to companies with a market capitalization of $1 billion or more. Then I screened for companies reporting revenue growth of at least 20% and a year-to-date increase of at least 10% in price. Finally and most importantly, I limited the screen to stocks that pay a dividend yield of at least 1.75%.
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD -0.39%), Carlyle Group (CG -0.26%), and Equitable Holdings (EQH -1.79%) are among the top names that I found. And best of all, you can own a share of each of them for just $200 total.
Toronto-Dominion Bank
Toronto-Dominion Bank is the parent company of TD Bank, which in the U.S. operates from the Northeast to Florida. The bank is one of the biggest in Canada and the sixth-largest in North America by assets, and has nearly 28 million customers.
Earnings for the second quarter were CA$22.9 billion ($16.7 billion), up a whopping 66% on a year-to-date basis thanks to the company’s sale of its 10% stake of Charles Schwab for $14.6 billion. The transaction came after TD Bank undertook a strategic review following a $3.1 billion fine it paid in 2024 in a money laundering investigation that also saw U.S. regulators impose an asset cap of $434 billion that restricts future growth in the U.S.
For shareholders, the money laundering fine was a disaster, but the company is on its way to recovery. It took CA$8 billion ($5.9 billion) from the Schwab sale for a stock buyback campaign that solidified TD Bank’s stock price. The stock is up 39% so far this year, rising sharply since April, and 14 of 16 analysts who cover the stock on Yahoo! Finance have either a buy or hold recommendation.
Investors can also take comfort in knowing that Toronto-Dominion stock provides a 4.1% dividend yield and still trades 13% off its all-time high. So there’s still plenty of room for growth.
Carlyle Group
Carlyle Group is a global investment firm that had $453 billion of assets under management at the end of Q1, up 6% from a year ago.
The company manages investments through private equity funds, assets, and by investing (or buying) companies that it can improve and sell for a profit or run efficiently. Carlyle has a record of investing in more than 20,000 companies since its founding, and it currently has more than 425 active investments.
Revenue in Q1 was $973.1 million, up from $688.4 million a year ago. Net income was $130 million, which was nearly double from the $65.1 million the company posted in 2024’s Q1. Carlyle Group also pays a dividend yield of 2.7%. The stock is up 16% so far this year.
Equitable Holdings
Equitable is a New York-based insurance and financial services company that works with individuals and small businesses. The company says it has more than 3 million clients and just over $1 billion in assets under management, up from $975 million a year ago.
It has a primary focus on retirement planning. Its insurance portfolio focuses on full life and term life policies, as well as long-term care. It also has asset management and wealth management products. Equitable stock is up 13% so far this year and provides a dividend of 1.7%.
Charles Schwab is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Patrick Sanders has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Charles Schwab and recommends the following options: short June 2025 $85 calls on Charles Schwab. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
