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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
With a 63-Year History of Dividend Hikes, It's a King Among Kings
Investors might be looking to add safe and steady companies to their portfolios in uncertain times. This industry-leading beverage business announced a dividend increase in February, continuing a streak that's now at 63 years. With a powerful brand, global presence, and incredible profitability, this company's dividend looks very safe. 10 stocks we like better than Coca-Cola › It has been a turbulent year for markets. Investors are concerned about the state of the economy. And ongoing geopolitical tensions don't help alleviate worries. In this type of environment, it might be difficult to find places to invest your hard-earned savings. During uncertain times, which is the perfect way to characterize 2025 thus far, there's one monster dividend stock that investors might turn to if they want to earn steady income. This industry-leading enterprise is a king among kings that could be just what your portfolio needs. As of June 23, shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) have climbed 12% in 2025. This gain trounces the S&P 500 index's 2% rise this year. It appears the market is placing a high value on a safe and stable business, given the uncertainty surrounding the future from both macroeconomic and geopolitical perspectives. Coca-Cola is as steady as they come. It sees durable demand for its popular beverages. Unlike many other companies in different industries, Coca-Cola just isn't as exposed to the whims of the economic cycle. Consumers still love to spend money on their favorite drinks, no matter what's going on. I think this will still be true decades from now. There is minimal threat Coca-Cola will become obsolete. For starters, it has one of the most iconic brands in history. This leads to tremendous customer loyalty and proven pricing power. Coca-Cola has a leading market share in the non-alcoholic ready-to-drink industry on a global scale. And it has a presence in more than 200 countries. Coca-Cola's profitability is hard to ignore. Since it primarily offloads the capital-intensive bottling and distribution process to third parties, the company can operate a more efficient business model. This explains how the company posted a superb 32.9% operating margin in Q1 (ended March 28). The leadership team seems fairly confident as it looks ahead. Coca-Cola expects organic revenue to rise 5% to 6% in 2025. And to add a level of optimism, executives believe the ongoing tariff "impact to be manageable." Coca-Cola's profitability is impressive. Management is intensely focused on returning its excess cash to shareholders in the form of dividends. This company is a Dividend King, having raised its payout in a jaw-dropping 63 straight years (and counting). The last bump was announced in February, with the current dividend yield now at 2.87%. That dividend is a boon for investors with sizable stakes in the beverage giant. Just look at Berkshire Hathaway, which owns 400 million shares. This brings in $816 million in annualized income for the Warren Buffett-led conglomerate. To be clear, I think Coca-Cola makes sense as a worthy investment candidate only for those who care mostly about dividend income. It's difficult to predict what the future will hold, but there's certainly a good chance the company will continue to increase its payout indefinitely. And if broader macro concerns are on your mind, owning Coca-Cola could provide much-needed peace of mind for your portfolio. But for those investors who want to generate market-beating returns from the stocks they own, it's probably best to avoid Coca-Cola. Even including dividends, the stock has underperformed the S&P 500 in the past three-, five-, and 10-year periods. That's not exactly a track record that attracts growth investors. I see no reason to expect this trend to change over the next decade and beyond. Before you buy stock in Coca-Cola, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Coca-Cola wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $704,676!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $950,198!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,048% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 175% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 23, 2025 Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. With a 63-Year History of Dividend Hikes, It's a King Among Kings was originally published by The Motley Fool
Yahoo
18-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's Why Berkshire Hathaway Stock Is a Buy Before July
The Warren Buffett-led company will post its second-quarter results sometime in early July. Although the quarterly report won't mean much in and of itself, it could add some context to other important matters surrounding Berkshire Hathaway right now. Chief among those matters is the impending departure of Warren Buffett as the company's long-time CEO. 10 stocks we like better than Berkshire Hathaway › Anyone that knows anything about Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK. A) (NYSE: BRK.B) understands that it's unlike any other company. It's one part conglomerate, one part mutual fund, and one part private equity outfit. That's why the business updates it posts every quarter aren't quite as closely watched as those of more conventional companies -- they just don't mean as much, since they're not exactly snapshots of its operations. Still, investors thinking about taking on a position in Berkshire Hathaway might want to do so before the end of June. Although its second-quarter earnings report due sometime in early July won't technically mean any more than it usually does, this particular report could prove particularly catalytic -- in a bullish way. Here's why. The image below is a snapshot from the first page of Berkshire's first-quarter earnings report...a document that's typically only two pages long. The reported investment gains reflect the (mostly unrealized) gains or losses stemming from the rise or fall of the stocks held by the conglomerate. Operating earnings, on the other hand, come from the net cash produced by the company's privately held businesses like Dairy Queen, railroad BNSF, and insurer Geico during the three-month stretch in question. Note that even Berkshire Hathaway itself believes the reported investment gains or losses mean very little in any single quarter. Buffett and his lieutenants truly are thinking much longer term. And yet, there's a good chance the market just might respond to the upcoming Q2 direct as well as indirect reasons. Directly, Berkshire's second-quarter report could indicate the restoration of the operating earnings that took a sizable dip during the first quarter of 2025, when payouts linked to California's wildfires led to a near-halving of the company's insurance-underwriting profits... ...not that Berkshire is exactly cash-strapped (as of the most recent look, it's sitting on $278 billion in cash), but having access to as much reliable liquidity as you could ever need or want is never a bad thing. A bounce-back in operating earnings could provide some much-needed reassurance to investors starting to wonder if the company's cash cows are drying up on a more permanent basis. The other direct reason Berkshire's upcoming quarterly report may well be bullish is the obvious one. That is, after a stumble during Q1, rekindled investment gains would assure shareholders that Buffett and his team are still sitting on all the right stocks in all the right proportions. And investment gains are likely. The recent reduction in sizable stakes in Bank of America and Capital One Financial both would have happened at prices above Q1's closing prices. In the meantime, although the recent purchase of shares of Pool Corp., Constellation Brands, and Domino's Pizza established or added stakes in stocks that remain relatively lethargic, the market itself is now above March's final levels. This should help boost Berkshire Hathaway's second-quarter investment gains, realized or unrealized. That's the potential direct upside for Berkshire Hathaway shareholders stemming from the company's upcoming quarterly report. Yet there's a less direct, more philosophical reason the results due sometime early in the coming month could also be bullish. And it's got everything to do with the buzz currently surrounding the company. Cutting to the chase, Warren Buffett is stepping down from his role as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. He'll be replaced by Greg Abel at the beginning of the coming year. It will be the first time in 55 years the Oracle of Omaha won't be at the helm, prompting at least a little bit of worry from more than a few investors. After all, we're on the verge of finding out just how much of Berkshire's market-beating success is its own, and how much of it is attributable to Buffett's brilliant mind. There's something else happening here, however, that's not been particularly well noticed by the market just yet. That is, it looks like Warren Buffett may be cleaning up some last-minute matters before taking the offramp. Long-term stocks in Bank of America, Capital One, and Citigroup have actually been pared back for a few quarters now. He's also finally let go of hit-and-miss beauty retailer Ulta Beauty as well as several other positions of insignificant size. Then there's Kraft Heinz, which Berkshire's been sitting on since Buffett helped orchestrate the merger of Kraft and Heinz back in 2015, but has underperformed -- significantly -- since 2017. While Berkshire Hathaway has neither confirmed nor denied it (not that it would confirm it until after the fact), there are credible whispers now circulating that Buffett and his team are finally ready to bite the proverbial bullet and sell this laggard at a loss. And whether or not the rumors are true, there's no denying we're starting to see more trading activity within Berkshire's stock portfolio than we've seen in years.. actions that Buffett has seemingly wanted to keep to a minimum until now... The company's second-quarter numbers won't reveal any recent buys and sells, to be clear. Those trades are reported on an SEC filing called a 13F. That's not what the early July report is. The upcoming Q2 report will put the spotlight back on all of these recent actions, though, and in some ways might force the financial media to discuss the prospect of Berkshire's impending exit of Kraft Heinz. This discussion, in turn, has the chance to bolster confidence in the conglomerate's near and distant future. So, the calendar is somewhat encouraging an investment in this unique company sooner rather than later. Just don't read too much into it. As is the case with any other publicly traded company, this is just one quarter. You should be thinking longer-term than that. In the sense that Berkshire Hathaway is apt to be just as promising -- even without Buffett's presence -- five, 10, and 20 years from now as it was five, 10, and 20 years ago, though, there's certainly no need to wait until after July's Q2 earnings release to take the plunge. Before you buy stock in Berkshire Hathaway, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Berkshire Hathaway wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $653,702!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $870,207!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 988% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 172% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 9, 2025 Citigroup is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. James Brumley has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America, Berkshire Hathaway, Domino's Pizza, and Ulta Beauty. The Motley Fool recommends Capital One Financial, Constellation Brands, and Kraft Heinz. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Here's Why Berkshire Hathaway Stock Is a Buy Before July was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
This Warren Buffett Dividend Stock Is Crushing the S&P 500. Here's Why It's Still Worth Buying in June for Passive Income.
Berkshire has trimmed many of its public equity holdings, but not Coca-Cola stock. The beverage giant's results are holding up well despite consumer pressures and tariff risks. Coca-Cola is a fair value and a reliable dividend stock for risk-averse investors to buy now. 10 stocks we like better than Coca-Cola › Folks often turn to Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) for investment ideas. And for good reason, as Berkshire Hathaway achieved a compound annual gain of 19.9% between 1965 and 2024 compared to 10.4% for the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC). But a lot has changed in the last few decades, as the most valuable companies today are tech stocks like Microsoft, Nvidia, and Apple -- not big oil companies and industrials like in the past. Berkshire's bold bet on Apple stock showed that it is willing to adapt with the times and adjust its portfolio to include more tech stocks. However, Berkshire has also been a net seller of public equities, growing its position in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities to record highs and focusing more on companies it controls rather than buying shares of public companies. One position that has remained steadfast through all the changes is Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO). In fact, Berkshire hasn't sold any shares of Coke in over 25 years. Despite keeping its position unchanged, Berkshire has gradually owned a larger share of Coke thanks to the company's stock buybacks. Today, Coke is Berkshire's third-largest holding behind Apple and American Express. Here's why Coca-Cola is crushing the S&P 500 in 2025 and why the dividend stock could still be worth buying in June. In February, Coke reported 2024 results and provided 2025 guidance of organic revenue growth of 5% to 6% and earnings per share (EPS) growth of 2% to 3%. The guidance wasn't great, but at least Coke was still expecting some growth while peers like PepsiCo continue to see intense strain on consumer spending and weakening pricing power. However, market dynamics changed between early February and when Coke reported its first-quarter 2025 results in late April. Tariffs are affecting global supply chains -- and Coke is a global business with higher sales outside North America than within. However, Coke has a distributed and localized supply chain consisting of bottling partnerships that help Coke quickly adapt and pivot as needed. Coke's strong beverage lineup -- with industry-leading brands across nonalcoholic beverage categories, including water, sparkling water, sports drinks, and juice, as well as health-conscious brands like Fairlife -- allows the company to cater to consumer preferences, which can vary based on geography. In its latest quarter, Coke achieved a 6% increase in organic revenue, the high end of its long-term target range. Coke also notched a 1% increase in year-over-year EPS despite a 5% currency headwind. Coke's strong results and competitive advantages gave the company the confidence needed to reaffirm its full-year guidance on both organic revenue growth and EPS despite tariff risks, currency headwinds, and pressures on sales volume due to challenged consumer spending. Coke's beverage lineup and ability to execute even during challenging periods make the company well positioned to steadily grow its dividend over time. In February, Coke raised its dividend by 5.2% to an annualized rate of $2.04 per share -- marking the 63rd consecutive year Coke boosted its payout. Based on Coke's $2.88 in 2024 EPS and guidance for 2% to 3% EPS growth in 2025, Coke is on track for a payout ratio of about 69% -- which is decent for a reliable dividend-paying company with a fairly recession-resistant business model. Coke's valuation is also reasonable, as $2.95 in 2025 EPS would imply a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.3 -- which is good for a rock-solid company in a non-cyclical industry. Coke checks all the boxes for a reliable dividend stock to buy in June for passive income. Coke is outperforming the S&P 500 in 2025 because the company's results and guidance showcase tariff resilience and Coke's competitive advantages. Coke has an impeccable track record of raising its dividend and generates plenty of earnings to afford the payout. Coke also has an attractive dividend yield of 2.8%, making it a good choice for retirees looking to supplement income. Add it all up, and it's easy to see why Buffett has confidently held Coke for decades and why the company still has what it takes to serve a foundational role in Berkshire Hathaway's public equity portfolio. Before you buy stock in Coca-Cola, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Coca-Cola wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $653,389!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $830,492!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 982% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 American Express is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Daniel Foelber has positions in Nvidia. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This Warren Buffett Dividend Stock Is Crushing the S&P 500. Here's Why It's Still Worth Buying in June for Passive Income. was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Up 9% in 2025, Is It Time to Buy This Warren Buffett Stock and Hold for 20 Years?
This small Berkshire holding has skyrocketed 13,690% since its initial public offering. The company continues to report solid revenue growth, and it possesses many favorable qualities. The shares aren't cheap at first glance, but investors might not care given how great this business is. 10 stocks we like better than Mastercard › Berkshire Hathaway owns dozens of stocks in its huge $288 billion portfolio. There's one tiny position that the Warren Buffett-led conglomerate owns that has generated a total return of 13,690% since its initial public offering in May 2006. Investors might want to learn what this business is. As of May 14, this financial stock is up 9% in 2025. At the same time, the S&P 500 index is little changed. Is it time to add this Buffett holding to your own portfolio and keep it for the next two decades? It's like watching a great athlete continue to compete at the highest level, even though they have been in the league seemingly forever. Observers can start to take things for granted. This might be the case with Mastercard (NYSE: MA). The company keeps performing well, at a time when it seems like the rest of the economy is worried about the possibility of a recession on the horizon. During the first quarter, Mastercard reported revenue of $7.3 billion, which was up 14% year over year. This top-line figure was driven by total payment volume that increased 9% to a whopping $2.4 trillion. A continuing trend has been strength in cross-border volume, rising 15%. "While there is uncertainty in the world, we've built a diversified, resilient business model and proven strategy that enables us to effectively navigate various economic environments," Chief Executive Officer Michael Miebach said in the press release. Wall Street average analyst estimates call for revenue to increase 13% this year. Besides the persistent momentum from a revenue perspective, as just mentioned, I believe there are three critical reasons investors should like Mastercard. The first has to do with the company's economic moat. Mastercard benefits from a powerful network effect. It has 3.2 billion cards that are active and in use. On the other side, there are 150 million merchants that accept them as a method of payment. With more cardholders, merchants find incredible value because there's a larger pool of customers. And as the number of acceptance locations grows, cardholders have greater ability to spend virtually anywhere. Another reason to be bullish is because of just how profitable Mastercard is. During the past five years, the company's operating margin has averaged 56.5%, showcasing how much in revenue flows to the bottom line. Running a vast payment platform that has low capital expenditures is a very lucrative endeavor. And lastly, it's not difficult to believe that Mastercard will register durable growth over the long term. The business gains on the back of economic growth, which leads to greater spending. What's more, the rise of cashless transactions supports more payment volume running through Mastercard's network. Mastercard is a wonderful company, and the valuation reflects this. As of this writing, the stock trades at a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.5. This is certainly a steep price to pay, but it's in line with the stock's trailing-five-year average. In other words, the shares rarely look cheap from a valuation perspective. It might never be a smart move to try to correctly time the market. In this case, however, I hold the view that the valuation doesn't provide a meaningful margin of safety. My strategy is to continue monitoring the stock and wait for a pullback. On the other hand, it makes sense why some investors would think differently. Mastercard is one of the world's truly elite businesses. Maybe dollar-cost averaging over time is an option for those considering owning the stock for the next two decades. Before you buy stock in Mastercard, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Mastercard wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $620,719!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $829,511!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 959% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 170% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 12, 2025 Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway and Mastercard. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Up 9% in 2025, Is It Time to Buy This Warren Buffett Stock and Hold for 20 Years? was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
3 Dirt Cheap Dividend Stocks to Buy During the Stock Market Sell-Off
Tariff tensions have rippled through the stock market, pushing the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) and Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX: ^IXIC) into correction territory. Rapid sell-offs can be jarring, no matter your risk appetite. One way to remedy volatility is by investing in dividend stocks. Quarterly dividend payouts can be a great way to boost your passive income stream amid stock market volatility and build up some dry powder without having to sell stock. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » Here's why American Express (NYSE: AXP), International Paper (NYSE: IP), and NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) stand out as three top dividend stocks to buy now. Daniel Foelber (American Express): Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE: BRK.A) (NYSE: BRK.B) second-largest holding -- American Express -- is down 15.1% year-to-date at the time of this writing. The sell-off could present an excellent opportunity to scoop up shares of the financial services company, especially since American Express has a price-to-earnings ratio of just 18.1. American Express is unique because it goes beyond payment processing by issuing its own cards, checking, high-yield savings, and more. This is a distinct difference from pure-play payment processors like Visa (NYSE: V) and Mastercard (NYSE: MA), which work with financial institutions to issue cards. American Express has a highly diversified customer base. In fiscal 2024, U.S. consumer services made up 38% of American Express' worldwide network volumes. U.S. commercial services made up 29% of volumes, international card services were 21%, and processed volumes were 12%. U.S. small and mid-sized businesses with annual revenues under $300 million are a core component of the American Express customer base, far outnumbering U.S. large and global corporations. Thanks to its diverse customer base and multiple service offerings, American Express is a coiled spring for economic growth. But it can also be vulnerable to a slowdown in business and consumer spending. American Express charges high fees for some of its cards, but also offers generous rewards programs. The allure of those rewards programs goes down if customers don't expect to spend as much. For example, if a business is forecasting lower sales, and therefore lower expenses, then perks may not seem as appealing. In this vein, American Express is arguably riskier than pure-play payment processors, but it also has more upside potential. Over the last five years, American Express has significantly outperformed Visa, Mastercard, the financial sector, and the S&P 500. The company regularly repurchases stock, has raised its dividend considerably in recent years, and has never cut its dividend since it began paying one in 1977. American Express doesn't have a high yield because the stock has been such a strong performer and because buybacks typically outpace dividend expenses. In fiscal 2024, the company returned $7.9 billion to shareholders, with buybacks of $5.9 billion and dividends of $2 billion. If American Express didn't buy back stock and used its entire capital return program on dividends, it would yield over 5% on a trailing basis. But buybacks are a better use of capital than dividends for companies with strong future growth prospects. All told, American Express is an exceptional business offering good value and worthy of being a foundational holding in a diversified portfolio. Lee Samaha (International Paper): This packaging solutions company isn't the most exciting company on the market. However, it offers investors a near 4% dividend yield and an investment in a relatively safe and mature industry. In addition, it has some underlying growth prospects from its exposure to e-commerce packaging (currently about 18% of sales). It recently completed a deal to acquire British multinational packaging company DS Smith, creating a global player in the packaging market. This type of consolidation move typically occurs in mature industries, creating an opportunity for earnings growth by generating cost and revenue synergies through the integration of DS Smith. Management sees its North American and European long-term growth rate at 3% to 4% with margin expansion in tow, leading to $5.5 billion to $6 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) and free cash flow (FCF) of $2 billion to $2.5 billion in 2027. The midpoint of the FCF forecast represents 9.1% of its current market cap. With management aiming to allocate 40% to 50% of FCF on a dividend, it implies a yield of up to 4.6% in 2027 based on the current price. Scott Levine (NextEra Energy): With the first salvos regarding a trade war now fired, markets have been roiling for the past couple of weeks. NextEra Energy stock, for example, is now down 7.3% year to date. While this may be disconcerting for some, others will find it a great time to load up on shares with their 3.4% forward-yielding dividend. NextEra Energy is the largest electric utility based on market cap. It also owns Florida Power & Light Company, America's largest electric utility, which sells power to about 12 million Floridians. What distinguishes the company from its peers is that it has made a concerted effort to expand its renewable energy assets. In addition to its 40 gigawatts (GW) of solar, wind, and energy storage, NextEra Energy operates a nuclear fleet representing 6 GW of capacity. This enthusiasm for renewable energy is likely the cause of investors' concerns. In the company's recent 10-K, it noted that the imposition of tariffs on products from China could make it less financially attractive to develop additional green energy projects. While tariffs on Chinese products could deter NextEra Energy from developing renewable energy projects, this hardly spells doom for the company. It's highly improbable that customer demand for electricity will wane. Moreover, it's important to recognize that as a regulated utility, NextEra Energy is assured certain rates of return, illustrating why utilities are highly desired investment options during times of economic uncertainty. Investors will find that over the past 20 years, the company has maintained payout ratios -- an average 81% over the past five years -- that demonstrate a conservative approach to rewarding investors. With shares trading at 10.6 times operating cash flow, a discount to their five-year average multiple of 15, now's a great time to click the buy button on NextEra Energy stock. Before you buy stock in American Express, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and American Express wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $524,747!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $622,041!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 792% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 153% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of April 21, 2025 American Express is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Daniel Foelber has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Lee Samaha has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Scott Levine has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway, Mastercard, NextEra Energy, and Visa. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 3 Dirt Cheap Dividend Stocks to Buy During the Stock Market Sell-Off was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
