Dividend-paying stocks can boost investors’ portfolio returns and provide certainty in volatile markets.
Investors can track Wall Street analyst ratings to select stocks of dividend-paying companies with attractive growth prospects, which could boost profits and cash flow to support higher dividends.
Here are three attractive dividend stocksaccording to Wall Street’s Top Experts TipRanks is a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.
northern oil and gas
The first dividend stock of the week is northern oil and gas (However). The company is primarily engaged in the acquisition, exploration and production of oil and natural gas properties in the Williston Basin, Permian Basin and Appalachian Basin.
The dividends paid by NOG are 40 cents per share The first quarter grew by 18% compared with the same period last year. The stock’s dividend yield is 4.1%. The company also boosted shareholder returns through share buybacks US$20 million Season 1, 2024.
NOG recently announced an agreement to acquire a 20% undivided equity Acquired XCL Resources’ Uinta Basin assets for US$510 million. The deal will be done in partnership with SM Energy.
RBC Capital analysts react to the news Scott Hannold Reiterate a Buy rating on NOG stock with a price target of $46. After discussions with management, analysts noted that there is potential for further expansion in the Uinta Basin through additional transactions, similar to NOG’s strategy in the Permian and Williston basins.
Hannold said the deal is in line with NOG’s strategy of partnering with high-quality players such as SM Energy to capture lucrative opportunities. “This is NOG’s fourth large joint venture, meaningfully increasing its diversity, returns and inventory runway,” he said.
Given the significant accretive nature of the XCL deal, the analyst raised his 2025 earnings per share and cash flow per share forecasts by 11% to 12%, and raised his free cash flow per share forecast by 10%. He believes the solid free cash flow outlook could allow NOG to increase its underlying dividend. Hanold expects dividends to increase by 10% to 15% in 2025.
Hanold ranks No. 23 among more than 8,900 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings were profitable 67% of the time, with an average return of 26.7%. (look NOG stock buyback on prompt ranking)
JPMorgan
JPMorgan (JPMorgan), the largest U.S. bank by assets, is the next dividend pick. Last month, the bank announced plans Increase dividends Earnings per share will rise about 9% in the third quarter of 2024 to $1.25.
JPMorgan highlighted that a potential increase in its third-quarter dividend would mark its second dividend hike this year. In March 2024, the bank announced Increase dividends It rose from $1.05 per share to $1.15 per share. Additionally, JPMorgan’s board of directors has approved a new $30 billion share repurchase program, effective July 1, to boost shareholder returns.
Recently, analysts at Royal Bank of Canada Capital Gerald Cassidy Reiterate a buy rating on JPMorgan stock with a price target of $211. The analyst cited several reasons for his bullish investment thesis, including a strong management team, JPMorgan’s impressive business lines among the top three in the banking industry, and a solid balance sheet.
“We believe that as the company builds economies of scale in its consumer and capital markets businesses, it will achieve higher profitability by taking market share from weaker competitors,” Cassidy said.
The analyst also highlighted JPMorgan’s diverse business model, which generates revenue from consumer and community banking (41% of Q1 2024 revenue), corporate and investment banking (32%), asset and wealth management (12%), commercial banking (9%) and corporate (5%).
Cassidy ranks No. 128 among more than 8,900 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His rating success rate is 63%, with an average return of 14.7%. (look JP Morgan Stock Chart on prompt ranking)
Walmart
Finally, we come to the big box retailers Walmart (WMT). Earlier this year, the company raised its dividend 9% to 83 cents per share. This growth represents Walmart’s 51st consecutive annual rate hike.
In the first fiscal quarter, WMT returns US$2.73 billion Returned to shareholders through $1.67 billion in dividends and $1.06 billion in share repurchases. The payout ratio is 37.5%, and the company believes there is potential for further dividend growth.
Recently, Jefferies analysts Corey Tallow reiterated a buy rating on WMT with a price target of $77 and said the stock remains his company’s top pick. The analyst believes Walmart is in the early stages of its AI and automation journey.
Tarlowe believes that by fiscal year 2029, artificial intelligence and automation can help the company’s operating income double compared with fiscal year 2023, bringing in more than $20 billion in incremental earnings before interest and taxes. Analysts expect the increase in operating income to be driven by a variety of factors, including automation efficiency, advertising, anti-theft and autonomous driving.
Amid recent artificial intelligence developments, analysts highlight WMT’s strategic investments and Partnering with Flowserve Robotics, providing the world’s first automatic stacker. He also mentioned deploying automated receipt verification arches at Sam’s Club stores as part of the company’s artificial intelligence strategy.
“Overall, we expect WMT to capture an increasing share of customer spending through enhanced omnichannel capabilities, partnerships and services,” Tarlowe said.
Tarlowe ranks No. 266 among more than 8,900 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His rating success rate is 67%, with an average return of 19.7%. (look WMT technical analysis on prompt ranking)
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