12 Best S&P 500 Stocks to Buy for Dividends

10. The Southern Company (NYSE:SO)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 54

Dividend Yield as of June 23: 3.20%

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) is one of the largest producers of electricity in the United States and the largest wholesale provider in the Southeast.

On June 18, Barclays analyst Nicholas Campanella slightly trimmed the firm’s price objective on The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) from $99 to $98, but maintained an ‘Equal Weight’ rating on the shares. The lowered target still implies an upside of almost 5% from the current levels.

The analyst firm stated that its recent meetings with the company’s management were largely consistent with its first-quarter update. The utility is targeting adjusted earnings of $1 per share for Q2, indicating a YoY growth of almost 9%.

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) maintains a strong record of paying a dividend to its shareholders every quarter for 79 consecutive years. The company has also grown its payouts for 25 consecutive years and boasts an impressive annual dividend yield of 3.20%, putting it among the 10 High Yield Income Stocks for Lasting Retirement Income.