Consistent dividend growth is one thing you can safely expect from Dividend Aristocrats. That’s one of the reasons most investors are interested in them in the first place and why they are an essential part of the retirement planning of many investors. Consistent and reliable dividend growth is critical to creating an inflation-resistant passive income.
However, in 2024, a few stocks exceeded their usual dividend-growth pattern. This has made their dividends even more attractive and worth considering for 2025, especially as long-term holdings.
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A telecom giant
BCE (TSX: BCE) is the largest telecom company in Canada by market cap and a few other metrics. It’s currently the worst-hit stock in the telecom sector due to the onslaught brought on by regulatory challenges. It’s down 54% from its five-year peak, and the current trajectory doesn’t look promising either.
The company’s dividend growth streak has ended after one-and-a-half decades, but it’s not cutting its dividends for now. At its current yield of 11.9%, it’s one of the most generous blue-chip dividend stocks currently trading on the TSX. This put its dividends in a class of its own throughout 2024 when the yield gradually increased and reached its current level.
A banking giant
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (TSX: CM) was one of the best-growing banking stocks in 2024. Its yield has climbed over 43% in the last 12 months, which isn’t conducive to a high yield, but the bank’s yield is still quite attractive at 4.3%, thanks partly to the largest dividend hike in the last three years.
The bank raised its payouts from $0.90 in the third quarter to $0.97 for the fourth quarter of 2024. While the yield is attractive enough if you want to buy the stock right now, its trajectory is shifting from bullish to bearish, and if a correction is coming, it would be prudent to wait for the stock to bottom out and lock in the best possible yield, maximizing the impact of the dividend growth.
An energy giant
Canadian Natural Resources (TSX: CNQ) is the country’s top oil producer, second-largest natural gas producer, and largest energy company by total reserves. It has also been one of the most stable upstream companies in the last decade, recovering from the 2014 slump before the post-pandemic bull market pushed most energy stocks up past the required level.
However, like most energy stocks in Canada, 2024 wasn’t a great year for the company, and the stock gradually slumped. The company still raised its dividends, maintaining its position as a Dividend Aristocrat by a decent margin.
Foolish takeaway
While the three stocks aren’t at or near the top of the companies that paid record dividends in 2024, they are among the most desirable picks from that pool. You can buy BCE now, assuming it has already hit rock bottom and will likely go up in 2025. For the other two, waiting for their current bearish phases to fully manifest might be brilliant.
