In this article, we are going to discuss the 12 best S&P 500 stocks to buy for dividends.
Dividend stocks remain a popular choice for income-focused investors. Financial experts often point to the broader market as a strong hunting ground for long-term dividend opportunities. According to Cabot Wealth Network, more than 75% of the stocks in the S&P 500 pay a dividend as of 2026, reflecting how actively companies are using dividends to attract and retain investors.
On June 17, CNBC reported that investors should place a greater emphasis on income as they navigate an uncertain market environment, according to Wells Fargo Investment Institute. Darrell Cronk, president of Wells Fargo Investment Institute and chief investment officer for Wealth and Investment Management, noted that investors face several challenges despite being able to lock in yields that are higher than those seen in decades. These challenges include inflation, income replacement risk when maturing bonds are replaced with new assets, stock market concentration, and elevated uncertainty as markets assess the impact of the U.S.-Iran war, higher oil prices, a new Federal Reserve chairman, and a mid-year election that could influence fiscal policy before and after the vote.
Tracie McMillion, head of global asset allocation strategy, made the following comment after the outlook’s release:
“Building an income-focused portfolio isn’t just about building a laddered bond portfolio anymore. It’s about building a resilient, multi-asset class income stream.”
She added that this approach includes dividend-paying stocks, which have the potential to grow alongside rising prices. Unlike traditional fixed-income investments, dividend stocks can provide a measure of protection against inflation while also generating income.
With that said, here are the Best Dividend Stocks to Buy in the S&P 500.
Photo by Viacheslav Bublyk on Unsplash
Our Methodology
To collect data for this article, we referred to screeners to identify stocks that are part of the auspicious S&P 500 and then restricted our search to the top 200 companies by weight. We then further shortlisted stocks that had an annual dividend yield of over 2% and ranked them by the number of hedge funds invested in them at the end of Q1 2026, as per the Insider Monkey database. We kept our final selection limited to companies that have recently reported noteworthy developments likely to impact investor sentiment. The following are the Best S&P 500 Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds.
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).
12. Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 48
Dividend Yield as of June 23: 4.06%
Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) is a global leader in the ownership of premier shopping, dining, entertainment, and mixed-use destinations and an S&P 100 company.
On June 18, Scotiabank raised its price target on Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) from $206 to $220, while keeping a ‘Sector Perform’ rating on the shares. The target boost implies an upside of over 2% from the current levels.
Scotiabank believes that REIT valuations have now become less attractive after a strong start to the year. As a result, it adjusted its subsector preferences based on its “relative valuation-versus-growth framework”.
The analyst firm continues to favor seniors housing the most and also upgraded its outlook on self-storage and net lease from ‘Marketweight’ to ‘Overweight’. On the other hand, it downgraded its views on industrial and shopping centers from ‘Overweight’ to ‘Marketweight’, citing relative valuation concerns.
Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) recently raised its full-year 2026 real estate FFO guidance to a range of $13.10 to $13.25 per share, up from $13 to $13.25 per share previously.
11. U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 51
Dividend Yield as of June 23: 3.46%
As the fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States, U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) works across a diversified mix of businesses, including commercial and institutional banking, business banking, payments, wealth management, and consumer banking.
On June 17, U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share. The dividend is payable on July 15 to shareholders as of the June 30 record. The bank is largely dependent on interest income instead of investment banking, so its profitability and revenue tend to be more predictable and consistent, helping it sustain its high dividend yield of 3.54%.
In other news, earlier on June 15, Stephens resumed coverage of U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB) with an ‘Equal Weight’ rating and a price target of $63, implying an upside of over 7% from the current levels.
Stephens reinstated coverage of nine super-regional banks and stated that it is “broadly constructive” regarding the group’s outlook, pointing to the improved operating leverage over the last year. The analyst firm also expects the 2026 capital return levels to hit levels not seen since 2019, with the potential for further acceleration pending the Basel 3 Endgame proposals.
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.
9. Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 55
Dividend Yield as of June 23: 3.41%
Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) engages in the distribution of natural gas and energy-related services. The company owns and operates a diverse mix of regulated power plants – including hydro, nuclear, solar, battery storage, etc.
On June 11, Barclays analyst Nicholas Campanella lowered the firm’s price target on Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) from $143 to $134, but kept its ‘Overweight’ rating on the shares. The revised target, which still represents an upside of over 8% from the current share price, comes after the analyst had a meeting with the company’s management.
Barclays believes that Duke’s 15 GW data center pipeline is “vetted and executable”. The utility signed 2.7 GW of ESAs with data center customers in the first quarter, bringing its total executed agreements to approximately 7.6 GW. Duke is targeting 6-7 GWs of signed contracts this year.
Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) revealed in its Q1 earnings call that it remains on track to achieve its 2026 earnings guidance range of $6.55 to $6.80 per share. Moreover, the company reaffirmed its long-term target to deliver an EPS growth rate 5% to 7% through 2030.
8. American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 62
Dividend Yield as of June 23: 2.84%
American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) is one of the nation’s largest electricity producers with approximately 29 GW of diverse generating capacity. The company operates and maintains the nation’s largest electric transmission system with 40,000 line miles, along with more than 225,000 miles of distribution lines to deliver energy to 5.6 million customers in 11 states.
On June 18, Ladenburg trimmed its price target on American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) from $148 to $143, but maintained its ‘Buy’ rating on the shares. The lowered target still indicates an upside potential of almost 10% from the current price level.
To keep up with the soaring load demand, American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) recently increased its 5-year capital plan to $78 billion, up from $72 billion previously. In its last earnings call, the company reaffirmed its operating earnings guidance of $6.15 to $6.45 per share for full-year 2026, indicating a YoY growth of 5.5% at the midpoint. Moreover, it reiterated its premium operating earnings growth rate of 7% to 9% for 2026 through 2030, with an expected CAGR of 9%.
American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) was also recently included in our list of the 15 Best Nuclear Power Stocks to Buy According to Wall Street Analysts.
7. The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 63
Dividend Yield as of June 23: 2.85%
The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) operates as a diversified financial services company in the United States. It operates through three segments: Retail Banking, Corporate & Institutional Banking, and Asset Management Group.
On June 15, Stephens resumed coverage of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) with an ‘Overweight’ rating and a price target of $265, indicating an upside of almost 13% from the current levels.
Stephens resumed coverage of nine super-regional banks and stated that it remains “broadly constructive” on the group. The firm noted that operating leverage has improved over the last year. Moreover, it is forecasting the 2026 capital return to be at levels not seen since 2020, with the potential for further upside depending on the outcome of the Basel 3 Endgame proposals.
The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:PNC) is expecting its full-year 2026 average loan growth to be up by approximately 11% YoY. Moreover, it is targeting its net interest income to grow by around 14.5%, noninterest income by approximately 6%, and total revenue by around 11% when compared to last year.
6. Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 64
Dividend Yield as of June 23: 5.13%
Next on our list of the Best S&P 500 Dividend Stocks is Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN). The company provides strategy and consulting, industry X, song, and technology and operation services in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific.
On June 21, JPMorgan lowered its price objective on Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) from $201 to $179, but maintained its ‘Overweight’ rating on the shares. The revised target still reflects a significant upside of over 43% from the current price level.
The move comes after Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) reported mixed results for its Q3 2026 on June 18. The company suffered a $400 million hit to its Middle East business from the war during the quarter and warned of “more impact in the fourth”. Notably, the IT consulting giant also cut its revenue growth guidance for FY 2026 to between 3% and 4%, down from its previously forecasted range of 4% to 5%, and below analysts’ average estimate of $18.47 billion.
Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) has fallen by almost 25% over the last week, and JPMorgan attributed the decline to lower revenue growth and higher inorganic investments. That said, while the analyst firm trimmed its price target on ACN, it believes that the recent stock selloff has been “harsh”.
While we acknowledge the potential of ACN as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than ACN and that has 100x upside potential, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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