History is a great teacher. Looking back on the stock market’s last 100 years, we find dividend investing beats all other stocks. They handily outperform the S&P 500 and have never had a losing decade.
It makes sense dividend stocks would be so good. They tend to be profitable businesses that have been through numerous business and economic cycles. Coming through intact, if not better off, they share their success with shareholders.
And it turns out, among dividend payers, high-yield stocks are a superior investment. Wellington Management divided up dividend payers into five groups, or quintiles, and found chasing yield was a dangerous pursuit. Stocks in the first quintile with the highest dividend payouts didn’t do as well as those in the second offering “high” payouts. In fact, the second-highest quintile did better than all other quintiles. Between 1930 and 2022, these high-yielding dividend stocks beat all-comers nearly 80% of the time.
Investors looking to maximize their dividend income might choose to focus on these ultra-high-yield dividend stocks that pay monthly. The following three companies have yields averaging 10.7% annually and could help you meet your monthly bills.
AGNC Investment (AGNC)
Mortgage real estate investment trust AGNC Investment (NYSE:AGNC) is the first monthly dividend stock to buy. It sports an eye-popping yield of 14.67% but has had double-digit yields for well over a decade. Although the pandemic compressed its yield, it quickly returned to form immediately afterward.
AGNC’s business is simple to understand. It borrows money at low, short-term rates, then invests it in higher-yielding long-term assets, typically agency mortgage-backed securities (MBS). Agencies are government-sponsored entities like Fannie Mae, Ginnie Mae and Freddie Mac. They have the full faith and credit of the U.S. government behind them.
That means if the mortgages go under, the government (meaning you, the taxpayer) bails them out. It’s a low-risk investment for AGNC Investment. But low risk is not no risk. As noted, the REIT wants to borrow money at a low cost to invest. The Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hikes last year sent AGNC’s cost of borrowing soaring. That explains why the stock is down 15% over the past 12 months. With the promise of future rate cuts, however, AGNC stock should continue climbing. It’s already up 40% off its lows. In the meantime, investors can continue cashing their monthly dividend checks.
PennantPark Floating Rate Capital (PFLT)
PennantPark Floating Rate Capital (NYSE:PFLT) is no slouch in the yield department either — 10.7%. Yet, this ultra-high-yield dividend stock is a unique monthly payer in that it is a business development company (BDC) investing in mid-tier companies. It specializes in investing in the debt of the businesses, typically in the range of $5 million to $30 million, to create a diversified portfolio.
The BDC expects two-thirds of its investments will be in first-lien secured debt. That’s the best position to be in, should the company go under — PennantPark gets paid first. It then targets the other third, or so, of its investments in second-tier or subordinate debt. However, at the end of its fiscal fourth quarter, 85% of its $1.16 billion portfolio was in first-lien debt.
It’s also important to note that much of its investments are floating rate or variable interest. That helps insulate PennantPark from a rising interest rate environment. While that could pose problems for its investment companies, it only had three delinquencies. That represents just 0.9% of its portfolio businesses. With well over 100 companies, no one business will hurt the portfolio if it fails.
Modiv Industrial (MDV)
The third monthly dividend stock to consider is even more unique than PennantPark. Modiv Industrial (NYSE:MDV) is a REIT that owns and operates single-tenant industrial properties. Although it currently owns several retail and office properties, it is steadily shedding those in favor of other industrial sites. Among its biggest tenants are Costco (NASDAQ:COST), 3M (NYSE:MMM) and Cummins (NYSE:CMI).
What makes Modiv particularly special (other than its name standing for MOnthly DIVidend) is it was one of the largest non-listed REITs to be raised via crowdfunding before going public in 2022. It created a $535 million real estate portfolio and today is the only public REIT focused exclusively on the industrial market. Its portfolio holds 44 properties with an average lease of 14 years, giving it good long-term protection.
Modiv doesn’t see the current environment as particularly good for acquisitions. It stated, “We take the Buffett-esque view that, at this stage of the market cycle, we can afford to stand over the plate looking for the fat pitch without fear of strikes being called.”
The dividend of $1.15 a year, distributed in 12 monthly payments currently yields 7.66%. Its dividend coverage ratio, or the number of times a company can pay shareholders its dividend using net income, stands at 110%. While management said it’s not going to raise the payout at this juncture, it has made 88 consecutive distributions. It will make another in the next few days. With adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) rising 19% from last year, Modiv Industrial looks like a solid REIT to help pay your bills this month and beyond.
On the date of publication, Rich Duprey held a long position in MMM stock. The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.