Realty Income, Clorox, and Campbell's are paying dividend yields between 4.7% and 6.8%, above the S&P 500's average of 1%, even as major stock indexes hover near record highs. Cash flow or earnings at each company appear to cover the payout.
Three consumer-sector dividend stocks are paying yields well above the broader market even as major indexes hover near record highs. Realty Income, Clorox, and Campbell's each pay yields that beat the S&P 500's average of 1%, and their underlying cash flow or earnings appear to support the payouts.
Realty Income's monthly dividend keeps rising
Realty Income leases single-tenant buildings to companies including Home Depot, FedEx, and Tractor Supply, collecting rent through triple-net leases that make tenants cover maintenance, taxes, and insurance. Its portfolio of nearly 15,600 properties runs at almost a 99% occupancy rate.
The REIT has paid a monthly dividend since 1994 and just declared its 135th dividend increase, earning it the nickname "The Monthly Dividend Company." At over $3.25 annually, the stock pays a cash yield of 5.2%, far above the S&P 500 average.
Its 52 price-to-earnings ratio looks expensive, but funds from operations is the more relevant metric for a REIT. Measured against $4.27 per share in FFO income over the past 12 months, the multiple falls closer to 15.
Clorox's turnaround lifts a battered stock
Clorox, the consumer staples conglomerate behind Kingsford charcoal, Hidden Valley dressings, and Burt's Bees, has struggled since a 2023 cyberattack, and more recently a CRM system upgrade and rising inflation slowed sales. Analysts now expect sales to rebound in the current fiscal year.
The stock trades at about 22 times earnings. Its annual dividend has risen to $5 per share, pushing the yield to 4.7% as the price fell. Clorox's $881 million in free cash flow is well above the approximately $600 million it spent on dividends, and the company has raised its payout every year for decades.
Campbell's payout survives a multi-year low
Campbell's, owner of its namesake soups, V8, Pepperidge Farm, and Rao's Homemade, had IT upgrade issues that slowed sales for a time, while consumers grew increasingly drawn to organic and natural foods. The company is leaning on Rao's premium positioning, built on natural ingredients and small-batch cooking from a popular New York restaurant, to win back customers.
Shares have dropped to multi-year lows, leaving Campbell's at a price-to-earnings ratio of just 11. Its $1.56 annual dividend now yields 6.8%, and diluted net earnings of $1.55 per share for the first nine months of fiscal 2026, ended May 3, suggest the payout is unlikely to be cut.
Source: The Motley Fool
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