Some investors might be tempted by 10-year Treasury yields that are now hitting nearly 5%. But you can score even higher yields from some S&P 500 stocks.
Seven stocks in the S&P 500 — including Walgreens Boots Alliance, Ford Motor and Altria Group — yield more than 7%, says an Investor's Business Daily analysis of data from S&P Global Market Intelligence and MarketSurge.
Such high payouts are a reminder to investors that solid income is still out there. "Since the Federal Reserve cut the federal funds rate for the first of three times in mid-September 2024, the 10-year yield rose from the then-3.60% level to the recent 4.76% reading," said Sam Stovall of CFRA.
Scoring Giant Gains To Boot
So far the biggest S&P 500 yield play is also delivering large stock gains.
Drugstore giant Walgreens Boots Alliance yields 8.5%. That's the highest dividend yield in all of the S&P 500. But amazingly, the stock is also up 27.5% this year.
That makes Walgreens Boots very unusual in the S&P 500. It's one of just two stocks yielding 7% or more with a stock price gain this year.
Contrast Walgreens Boots with Ford Motor. Yes, Ford is yielding 8.1%. But its stock is also down nearly 2% this year.
Puffing Up Big Yields
Right on cue, tobacco seller Altria yields an impressive 8%. Due to its cash-cow business, it's typically a big yielder. Shares, though, are down nearly 3% this year.
The only other 7%-plus yielder with shares higher this year is LyondelBasell. Its shares are up 1.2% this year on top of yielding 7.4%.
Top S&P 500 Yields
| Company | Ticker | YTD change | Yield |
|---|---|---|---|
| Walgreens Boots Alliance | WBA | 27.5% | 8.5% |
| Ford Motor | F | -1.9% | 8.1 |
| Altria Group | MO | -2.8% | 8.0 |
| Crown Castle | CCI | -5.5% | 7.4 |
| LyondellBasell Industries | LYB | 1.2% | 7.3 |
| Dow | DOW | -1.1% | 7.2 |
| Verizon Communications | VZ | -4.7% | 7.1 |
