2 Canadian Stocks That Pay You While You Wait

If you are holding cash on the sidelines and waiting for the right moment to invest, these two stocks offer a better option: Get paid while you wait, regardless of when a bull market comes charging in.

You collect dividends through the messy middle, then you can reinvest that income at better prices if the recovery takes time. This approach can smooth out returns and reduce the temptation to try to time the market bottom. It also rewards patience, which is the one “skill” every market cycle demands. So let’s look at two stocks offering just that.

CU

Canadian Utilities (TSX:CU) looks relevant right now because defensive, regulated cash flow tends to matter more when investors feel jumpy about growth. It runs a diversified utility business under the ATCO umbrella, with regulated electricity and natural gas utilities and related infrastructure. Over the last year, it kept leaning into regulated rate-base growth and long-life projects, which usually makes the distribution feel steadier than the unit price.

The latest earnings picture underlines that stability, with adjusted earnings for 2025 of $658 million, or $2.42 per share, up slightly from $647 million, or $2.38 per share, in 2024. Fourth-quarter adjusted earnings came in at $0.72 per share, just under the prior year’s $0.74 per share. Investors also saw a sharp gap between adjusted and reported results, which can spook headlines even if the regulated engine keeps humming. That split reminds you to focus on the cash the business can reliably generate, not just one noisy accounting line.

On valuation and income, CU currently trades at 24 times earnings with a yield just under 4% at writing. The forward outlook hinges on capital spending and the pace of rate-base expansion, and management has pointed to a roughly $12 billion five-year capital plan across regulated utilities, which supports a longer runway for earnings growth. The risk sits in two obvious places: interest rates and payout coverage.

Canadian Utilities is the steadier of the two stocks here, with regulated cash flow, a $12 billion capital plan that supports earnings growth, and a near-4% yield that keeps paying through the noise. The adjusted vs. reported earnings gap is worth watching, but it does not change the underlying cash story.

GWO

Great-West Lifeco (TSX:GWO) looks relevant now as well since it pays you for waiting without forcing you into the most rate-sensitive corners of the market. It earns money through insurance, retirement, and wealth management, with big platforms that benefit when more Canadians and Americans save, invest, and retire. Over the last year, sentiment has followed markets and rate expectations, but the core story has stayed simple: scale and recurring fee income can keep profits resilient even when headlines feel noisy. That makes it a classic “hold and get paid” name for a recovery cycle.

Its most recent annual update landed with a confident tone. Great-West reported record 2025 base earnings and finished the year with fourth-quarter base earnings of $1.25 billion, or $1.36 per share, up from $1.12 billion a year earlier. Management linked that strength to higher assets from market growth and momentum in Retirement and Wealth, with continued traction at Empower, plus healthy activity in its Capital and Risk Solutions business. It also announced a 10% dividend increase and continued share repurchases, which signals it feels good about capital levels and forward cash generation.

At writing, GWO tends to look reasonable for a large financial, trading at 15.5 times earnings with a 3.8% yield at writing. The payout ratio sits near the high-50% range, which leaves room for future dividend growth if earnings keep expanding. The outlook depends on markets, net flows, and the level of interest rates that support investment income, but its diversified earnings mix helps.

Great-West is the compounder of the two stocks thanks to that 10% dividend increase, record earnings, and a payout ratio in the high-50s that leaves room for more raises. If you want to get paid while you wait and still have upside when markets recover, GWO lets you do both.

Bottom line

CU and GWO take two different routes to the goal of earning income as you wait for a stock price to pick back up.

Canadian Utilities leans on regulated utility cash flow and a steady dividend, while GWO leans on scale in insurance, retirement, and wealth, plus an improving dividend story.

If you invested $7,000 in each stock, here’s what the dividend income could look like:

Neither pick guarantees a smooth ride, but each one can keep cash landing in your account while the market sorts itself out.