In this article, we are going to discuss the 10 energy stocks with highest dividends.
Energy stocks are known for their high and regular dividends, thanks to their often strong free cash flows and healthy balance sheets. The Vanguard Energy Index Fund ETF, which passively tracks the performance of American energy companies, currently boasts an annual dividend yield of 2.66%. This compares to a yield of 1.08% by the Vanguard 500 Index Fund, which tracks the performance of the overall S&P 500.
The sector received a significant boost in the first quarter of 2026, driven primarily by the soaring oil prices amid the Middle East war. While consumers around the world lamented high fuel prices, the world’s biggest oil companies made estimated windfall war profits of around $23 billion during the first month of the Middle East conflict, according to figures from Rystad Energy.
FactSet stated that Wall Street forecasts for free cash flow of the three largest companies in the energy index alone have surged by a combined $60 billion for this year. Moreover, the FCF expectations for the two largest refiners in the index are also up by $18 billion. This means that across just these five companies, there is a 53% increase in cash that can be distributed to shareholders.
While the war has thankfully calmed down and oil prices have fallen from their multi-year highs, some analysts still expect them to remain above their pre-conflict levels. On June 26, Barclays lowered its forecasts for Brent crude price to $96 per barrel for 2026 and $85 per barrel for 2027, down from $100 and $88, respectively.
With that said, here are the Energy Stocks with Highest Dividends to Buy Now.
Our Methodology
To collect data for this article, we referred to screeners to identify energy stocks with an annual dividend yield of over 4%, as of June 30. We then limited our final selection to companies that have recently reported noteworthy developments likely to impact investor sentiment. The following are the Energy Stocks with Highest Dividends to Buy Now.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Insider Monkey’s quarterly newsletter strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 599.2% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 372 percentage points (see more details here).
10. Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR)
Dividend Yield as of June 30: 4.30%
Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) is a global independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company.
On June 29, Morgan Stanley cut its price objective on Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) from $37 to $35, while reaffirming an ‘Underweight’ rating on the shares. The lowered target still implies an upside of over 3% from the current price level.
The move comes after the analyst firm revised its estimates to reflect the latest energy prices. The WTI crude price has fallen by about 60% from its recent highs and is now hovering only slightly above its pre-conflict levels following the US-Iran MoU on June 14.
Separately, Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE:MUR) disclosed on June 23 that it had discovered oil at the Bubale-1X exploration well offshore Côte d’Ivoire. The company is targeting net production of 171,000 barrels of oil equivalents per day (boepd) for FY 2026, and recently reaffirmed its capital guidance range of $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion for the year.
9. Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)
Dividend Yield as of June 30: 4.30%
Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) manufactures and sells a range of high-quality refined products, including gasoline, diesel, marine and aviation fuels, premium base oil, finished lubricants, and fuel oil additives.
On June 29, Morgan Stanley lowered its price target on Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) from $214 to $210, but reiterated its ‘Overweight’ rating on the shares. The revised target, which still represents an upside of almost 27% from the current price level, follows the analyst firm’s updated estimates to reflect the recent changes in energy prices.
Morgan Stanley noted that the WTI crude price has fallen by nearly 60% from its recent peak in April and is now trading only slightly above its pre-conflict levels after the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding to end the war on June 14.
Known for its strong commitment to shareholders, Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) has grown its dividend for 39 consecutive years and boasts the coveted title of a Dividend Aristocrat. The company’s business has been designed to comfortably cover its payouts even at crude prices below $50 per barrel, allowing it to sustain its dividends even through multiple commodity downturns, including the oil market collapse in 2020.
Meridian Hedged Equity Fund stated the following regarding Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) in its Q1 2026 investor letter:
“Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) operates as a globally diversified integrated energy company, with upstream crude oil exploration and production complementing its downstream refinement and retail operations. Our investment thesis is anchored in the company’s strict capital discipline, its highly efficient Permian Basin footprint, and the strategic benefits expected from the integration of recently acquired Hess Corporation. Together, these strengths support the potential for durable free-cash-flow generation, consistent dividend growth, and steady share repurchases across commodity cycles. Chevron’s stock benefited in March from a sharp rise in oil prices following supply disruptions, but performance was also supported by better-than-expected earnings earlier in the quarter. These results reinforced confidence in the company’s management team, operational strength and financial discipline. We maintained our position throughout the quarter.”
8. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN)
Dividend Yield as of June 30: 4.36%
Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) is a leading provider of drilling and completion services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies in the United States and other select countries.
On June 29, Citi lowered its price recommendation on Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) from $11 to $10.50, while maintaining a ‘Neutral’ rating on the shares. The trimmed target still indicates an upside of 10% from the current levels.
Citi revised its models for the land drilling sector, noting that the companies in the group are at a “crossroads”. The analyst firm believes that this momentum should continue into the third quarter, but cautioned that further upside beyond that quarter is at risk. This is because after the US-Iran agreement and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the 2027 oil price strip has recently fallen toward $66 per barrel.
Meanwhile, earlier on June 16, Stifel analyst Stephen Gengaro raised the firm’s price target on Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:PTEN) by $1 and reiterated a ‘Buy’ rating on the shares (read more details here).
7. Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)
Dividend Yield as of June 30: 4.45%
Next on our list of the Energy Stocks with Highest Dividends is Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ). It is a senior crude oil and natural gas production company with continuing operations in its core areas located in Western Canada, the UK portion of the North Sea, and offshore Africa.
On June 26, Scotiabank assumed coverage of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) with a ‘Sector Perform’ rating and a price objective of C$72, indicating an upside of over 28% from the current levels.
The initiation is part of Scotiabank’s broader launch of coverage across the Canadian energy sector, which includes six large-cap E&P and royalty companies and six small-to-mid-cap E&P companies. The analyst firm stated that although the Canadian oil and gas sector has significantly outperformed since the beginning of 2026, it continues to see attractive opportunities in select companies.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) has grown its dividend for 26 consecutive years, with a CAGR of 20% over that time. The company moved its net debt below the $16 billion level in the first quarter and increased its pace of share repurchases, evident by the $309 million of buybacks in April 2026. The company is now targeting a net debt level of $13 billion, at which time it will increase returns to shareholders to 100% of free cash flow.
6. Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR)
Dividend Yield as of June 30: 4.84%
Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) is an international energy company headquartered in Norway, with over 25,000 employees in around 20 countries worldwide.
On June 29, TD Cowen cut its price target on Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) from $42 to $37, but maintained a ‘Hold’ rating on the shares. The lowered target still implies an upside of almost 18% from the current levels.
According to TD Cowen, Equinor’s outlook is supported by higher output, although this is expected to be offset by higher capital expenditures. The analyst firm also highlighted the increased visibility around the company’s share buyback program.
While EQNR appears cheap relative to its historic levels, the firm believes that it still trades at a premium compared to its peers based on the 2026-27 outlook. Although the higher energy prices could provide support in the near-term, TD Cowen expects more material outperformance to emerge only after the company reaches its free cash flow inflection point in 2029.
At its 2026 Capital Markets Day earlier this month, Equinor revealed that it now plans to spend $3 billion on buying back its own shares this year, up from the $1.5 billion projected earlier in February. The company is targeting to raise its quarterly cash dividend by 5% per year with annual share buybacks of $2 billion to $4 billion from 2027, based on oil prices of $60-$80 per barrel and European gas prices of $7-$11/MMBtu.
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