The Canadian stock market has many great dividend stocks that could help provide investors with a solid source of passive income. However, there are some very strong companies in the United States that deserve consideration for your portfolio as well. By investing in international stocks, investors could provide greater stability to their portfolio by spreading risk out across different geographies.
In this article, I’ll discuss three U.S. stocks that could turbocharge your portfolio.
The first stock I ever bought
When I first started investing, Procter and Gamble (NYSE: PG) was the first stock that I bought for my new portfolio. What initially interested me about Procter and Gamble was how large its product portfolio is. That portfolio includes popular names such as Charmin, Gillette, Old Spice, Pampers, and Tide. In fact, if you look at the back of many essential household items that you have at home, there’s a good chance you’ll find that you’re using Procter and Gamble products.
Another thing that interests me about the company is its strong dividend history. As of this writing, Procter and Gamble has raised its dividend in each of the past 66 years. That’s not only a longer streak than any TSX-listed company, but it’s tied for the longest dividend-growth streak in the United States. When it comes to having a reliable dividend, Procter and Gamble is one of the best options around.
A massive healthcare company
Johnson and Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is another dividend stock that investors should consider for their portfolio. Like Procter and Gamble, this company operates a large portfolio of products which are used around the world. Some of its brands include Aveeno, Band-aid, Benadryl, Listerine, and Tylenol. Although its portfolio is smaller than that of Procter and Gamble, its products tend to be very dominant in their respective markets.
Johnson and Johnson also maintains a very impressive dividend-growth streak at 60 years. It should be noted that Johnson and Johnson’s payout ratio is a bit higher than I’d generally like to see from a dividend stock in my portfolio (62.74%). However, the company’s long history of raising dividends suggests that it’ll be able to work around that payout ratio in the future. With a forward dividend yield of 2.80%, dividend investors should heavily consider adding this stock to their portfolio today.
Invest in this beverage company
Finally, investors should consider buying shares of Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) today. This is one of the largest beverage companies in the world. It produces several different beverages, which include the likes of Coca-Cola, Dasani, Fanta, Minute Maid, and Powerade. It’s estimated that Coca-Cola also holds a 47% share of the global soft drink market today. With more than 31 million units being sold worldwide on an annual basis, Coca-Cola is certainly a massive company.
Like the other two companies discussed here, Coca-Cola maintains a long dividend-growth streak (60 years). In addition, its forward dividend yield stands at 2.90%. With the clear market dominance that the company has, and its strong dividend, Coca-Cola is a no-brainer buy for your portfolio today.
