4 Safe High-Yield Dividend Stocks to Buy for Q4 Volatility

Whether it is tomorrow, October or December, when the Federal Reserve finally raises interest rates a tiny 25 basis points, or one-quarter of 1%, the market most likely sells off. The knee-jerk reaction may even scare investors enough for the indexes to retrace to the August lows. Investors looking to stay in the equity markets but insulate themselves from volatility may want to look at beaten-down high-yielding market leaders.

We screened the Merrill Lynch research universe database for mega-cap stocks that have already been sold-off and pay outstanding dividends. We found four top companies that have a long and successful track record but have been hit hard this year. All four make good sense for growth and income investors, and all are rated Buy at Merrill Lynch. This company posted solid second-quarter numbers and the rest of the year looks promising. AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) has to be one of the most ignored dividend plays on Wall Street. Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) is a top mega-cap consumer discretionary stock. Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) has reshaped the company’s product line in recent years, and sales have been outstanding. Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) is an energy sector play that the Merrill Lynch analysts are very positive on long term.

Source: 24/7 Wall St

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