These three stocks boast an average yield that is more than three times the average dividend payer in the benchmark S&P 500 index.
The market's been on a bull run, but most of the gains have been confined to a handful of tech stocks at the top. There are still plenty of high-yield dividend stocks that haven't gained as much attention as they probably deserve.
Investors looking for near-certain ways to grow the stream of passive income their retirement accounts produce have some terrific options. Medtronic (MDT 4.05%), Agree Realty (ADC 2.62%), and Realty Income (O 2.23%) offer an average yield of about 4.7% at recent prices.
Here's how these well-established dividend payers could continue meeting and raising their dividend commitments in the decade ahead.
Medtronic
Medtronic is the world's largest developer and manufacturer of innovative medical devices. At recent prices, the stock offers a 3.6% dividend yield that investors can reasonably expect to rise in the decade ahead. In May, the company raised its dividend payout for the 47th consecutive year.
With Medtronic's long history of developing and marketing new devices, its sales representatives find it relatively easy to engage with busy hospital purchasing managers. That makes investing in new technologies significantly less risky than it is for its competitors.
The 2018 acquisition of Mazor Robotics for $1.6 billion is a prime example of Medtronic's size advantage. Mazor's spine and brain surgical guidance systems for minimally invasive procedures support a neuroscience portfolio that generated $9.4 billion in revenue during fiscal 2024, a 5% year-over-year increase. In April, the company received FDA approval for a new spinal cord stimulator that could help its neuroscience segment continue growing.
Since this is a well-established medtech giant, rapid growth isn't likely. But steady gains for at least another decade aren't an unreasonable expectation.
Agree Realty
Agree Realty is a real estate investment trust (REIT), which means it can legally avoid income taxes by distributing nearly all it earns to shareholders as dividend payments. At recent prices, it offers a 4.7% yield and a great chance to see the payout expand.
In 2021, Agree Realty switched from quarterly to monthly dividend payments. On an annual basis, though, its dividend has risen steadily since 2011.
Agree Realty employs long-term net leases that make tenants responsible for all the variable costs of building ownership, such as taxes and building maintenance. More than half of the rent the company expects to receive annually comes from leases that mature after 2030 or later. With annual rent escalators written into long-term net leases, Agree Realty has highly predictable cash flows.
Investors can look forward to significant payout bumps in the quarters ahead. Agree Realty expects adjusted funds from operations (FFO), a proxy for earnings used to evaluate REITs, to land in a range between $4.10 and $4.13 per share this year. That gives management plenty of room to raise the payout from its present level of $3.00 per share annually.
Realty Income
Realty Income is another net-lease REIT that focuses on commercial properties that aren't very susceptible to e-commerce, such as grocery stores, convenience stores, and dollar stores. Maintaining a diverse portfolio has allowed it to raise its dividend payout every quarter since becoming a publicly traded company in 1994.
At recent prices, Realty Income shares offer an eye-popping 5.7% dividend yield. With 15,485 commercial properties already in its portfolio at the end of March, though, rapid growth in the years ahead doesn't seem likely.
You probably shouldn't buy Realty Income expecting dramatic dividend growth, but this stock can help you become rich over time. The REIT finished March with about $4 billion in available liquidity and an A3 credit rating from Moody's. That means it has the necessary resources to continue consolidating a European commercial real estate market with relatively few competitors.
Realty Income's dividend growth rate in the decade ahead might not be as fast as it's been. With a fractured global market for commercial real estate and plenty of liquidity, though, investors can reasonably rely on continued payout raises throughout the decade ahead.
Cory Renauer has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Moody's and Realty Income. The Motley Fool recommends Medtronic and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $75 calls on Medtronic and short January 2026 $85 calls on Medtronic. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
