The Hottest Dividend Stocks Of 2015

CNBC screened the large-cap S&P 500 index to see where the hottest parts of the dividend stock market have been. First, only stocks that have the same dividend yield as the overall S&P 500 or greater were included. In this case, the threshold was 2 percent, the current overall dividend yield of the index. The 500 stocks became 223 after this screen. Second, we took the remaining names and only screened for ones with flat or positive year-to-date price performance. The list of 223 then became only 111.

It was an energy stock that made the top of the list, even though the sector has been one of the worst performers over the last 12 months because of the collapse in oil prices. Shares of independent oil refiner Valero Energy not only carry a respectable 2.6 percent dividend yield but have also managed to gain 26 percent since the end of 2014. Darden Restaurants also made the list. The stock offers a 3.2 percent dividend yield and has managed to gain 19 percent year-to-date. Mega cap pharmaceutical stocks also made the list. Shares of Pfizer currently yield 3.2 percent and have gained nearly 12 percent in that same time frame.

Source: CNBC

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