Did you know that there are some stellar slam-dunk dividend stocks which can line your portfolio with massive long-term potential? Not only can these stocks provide a reliable income source, but they can also fuel growth in a portfolio for decades.
Here’s a look at some of those slam-dunk dividend stocks to buy now and hold for decades.
Option 1: Banking on income
The first stock that is one of the slam-dunk dividend stocks for any portfolio is Toronto-Dominion Bank (TSX:TD). TD is the second-largest of Canada’s big bank stocks, offering a mix of growth and income-earning potential.
Canada’s big banks are always perceived as great long-term options. That view stems from three key points. First, the banks generate a solid, recurring revenue stream from their mature domestic market. Th at reliable revenue stream allows the bank to invest in growth, which leads to the second point.
The banks have turned to international markets to fuel growth. In the case of TD, that growth comes from the U.S. market, where TD operates a massive branch network stretching from Maine to Florida. That stellar growth came about in the years following the Great Recession.
During that period, TD acquired regional players and stitched them together into its current network. That stance on growth continues to this day. More importantly, that international presence provides the revenue needed to fund the final point, TD’s dividend.
TD pays out a handsome quarterly dividend and has done so for nearly two centuries. As of the time of writing, that works out to a yield of 4%. For long-term investors looking for a solid, income-producing stock, TD is an attractive option to consider.
Finally, throw in an established history of providing annual upticks to that dividend, and you have one of the slam-dunk dividend stocks to buy right now.
Option 2: More than oil, this is a must-have buy
There are few, if any, stocks on the market that can offer as much long-term potential and defensive appeal as Enbridge (TSX:ENB).
Enbridge is an energy infrastructure behemoth, offering investors an opportunity to invest in multiple energy segments.
The biggest and best-known of those segments is Enbridge’s booming oil and gas pipeline business. That business includes both natural gas and crude segments. Enbridge transports massive amounts of both across its network each day.
In fact, Enbridge transports so much oil and gas that it has made the company one of the most defensive options on the market. To put the extent of that defensive appeal into context, Enbridge transports one-fifth of the natural gas needs of the U.S. Turning to crude, that number is a staggering one-third of all North American-produced crude.
In short, Enbridge’s defensive appeal is massive. And that pipeline business generates the bulk of Enbridge’s revenue.
In the most recent quarter, the company earned $1.4 billion, or $0.65 per common share on an adjusted basis. This was a noted improvement over the $1.2 billion, or $0.58 per common share, in the same period last year.
Beyond the pipeline business, Enbridge also boasts a growing renewable energy operation and a natural gas utility. Both segments provide a growing, reliable source of revenue that is backed by regulated contracts.
Collectively, all of those segments help Enbridge to invest in further growth and pay out a very attractive quarterly dividend.
As of the time of writing, that dividend pays out an impressive 5.6% yield. Even better, Enbridge has provided investors with an annual bump to that dividend for three consecutive decades without fail.
That fact alone makes Enbridge one of the slam-dunk dividend stocks to buy now and hold for decades.
What other Slam-dunk dividend stocks will you buy?
No stock is without risk, and that includes both Enbridge and TD Bank. That being said, both stocks offer investors growth potential and stable dividends wrapped in a defensive shell.
In my opinion, one or both should be core positions in any well-diversified portfolio.
