5 Best Dividend Growth Stocks to Buy in August

In this article, we discuss 5 best dividend growth stocks to buy in August. If you want to read our detailed analysis of dividend growth stocks and their performance, go directly to read 10 Best Dividend Growth Stocks to Buy in August. 

5. PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Dividend Yield as of August 7: 2.64%
Years of Consistent Dividend Growth: 49

A multinational beverage company, PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) deals in the manufacturing, marketing, and distribution of its products. Since the start of 2022, the stock gained 0.91% while its 12-month returns came in at 13.09%, as of the market close of August 6.

In Q2 2022, PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) reported an operating cash flow of over $2 billion, up from $174 million in the previous quarter. The company’s free cash flow for the quarter came in at over $1.07 billion, growing from $696 million in Q1 2022. Its net revenue grew by 7% year-to-date and 5.2% quarter-over-quarter. PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) holds one of the strongest dividend growth histories, raising its payouts consistently for the past 49 years. It pays a quarterly dividend of $1.15 per share, with a yield of 2.64%, as of August 7.

In August, Morgan Stanley raised its price target on PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) to $198 with an Overweight rating on the shares, appreciating the company’s distribution agreement with Celsius.

At the end of March 2022, 62 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database owned stakes in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP), down from 60 in the preceding quarter. The collective value of stakes owned by hedge funds stood at over $4.8 billion.

ClearBridge Investments mentioned PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) in its Q4, 2021 investor letter. Here is what the firm said:

“The pandemic created opportunities for us to be more aggressive in a variety of areas of the market. We were opportunistic throughout the year. After a strong year for equities, we sought to bolster more defensive areas of the portfolio and added to PepsiCo, increasing our exposure to a high-quality and stable name.”