10 S&P 500 Stocks With Great Dividends

Income investors see rising yields.

Wall Street's volatility is a huge cause for concern when your primary goal is to buy low and sell much higher. However, income investors with a long-term focus on regular dividend payments instead of share appreciation have much more to be cheerful about. That's because when share prices decline, dividend yields rise. (It's always important to check the quality of that dividend yield before you invest.) That said, slumping prices have created yields of more than 6 percent in 10 top dividend payers in the S&P 500 index lately, and income investors should take a close look at these names as they position their portfolio for the New Year.

Altria Group (ticker: MO)

Altria is the company behind big U.S. cigarette brands like Marlboro, smokeless tobacco products including Copenhagen and Skoal, and wines under labels including Chateau Ste. Michelle. These products admittedly aren't the healthiest and struggle to find growth, but they certainly have strong baseline sales from loyal customers year after year. That reliable revenue fuels reliable dividends, with Altria recently increasing payouts in August from 70 cents to 80 cents per share. Longer term, Altria has a strong history of dividend payments, too, with at least one annual increase in its dividend for the last 49 consecutive years.

Current yield: 6.8 percent

Macerich Co. (MAC)

Macerich is a real estate investment trust, or REIT, that develops and manages malls. As of 2018, Macerich owned 52 million square feet of real estate in 48 regional shopping centers from Arizona to Chicago to the District of Columbia. Real estate is a capital-intensive business and the IRS allows companies like Macerich tax breaks if they are structured as trusts. That's good for MAC because it cuts operational costs, but it's also good for investors because 90 percent of taxable income must be returned to shareholders as dividends. As long as the shops make their rent payments on time, this REIT passes a big chunk on to shareholders.

Current yield: 7 percent

Seagate Technology (STX)

Hard disk drive manufacturer Seagate is normally on lists of dividend stocks like this, which is sometimes surprising to new investors. After all, in the age of mobile technology, why would it be wise to invest in an old-school disk drive company? While there may not be dramatic growth in STX's future, there is strong baseline for sales since many businesses rely on laptops and desktop computers to the get the job done. That results in steady sales and steady dividends, even if you may never see STX shares go on a huge rally in the age of smartphones.

Current yield: 6.7 percent

Navient Corp. (NAVI)

Navient is a financial corporation that mainly provides student loan services, including federally subsidized loans through the U.S. Department of Education. College education costs are a sore subject for many Americans since the cost of a degree has spiraled higher, plus the fact that student loan debts are incredibly difficult to discharge. NAVI presents a unique opportunity for investors to profit from these trends even if you don't agree with them. Thanks to continued interest payments from borrowers, Navient can support a consistent dividend payment to shareholders.

Current yield: 7.2 percent

AT&T (T)

The telecom industry was a sector targeted for growth, but nowadays the entrenched domestic operations of mega-cap AT&T give it the appearance of a utility. After all, an internet connection is similar to electricity in that it's a must-have for households in the 21st century. There may not be a ton of growth ahead of AT&T given the costly upkeep on its network and the highly regulated nature of telecoms, but there also is little chance of disruption. And, for income investors, the company steadily returns a portion of its customer bills back to shareholders via regular paydays.

Current yield: 7 percent

Kimco Realty Corp. (KIM)

Kimco is another REIT that focuses on shopping space. Kimco is one of North America's largest owners and operators of open-air shopping centers. Unlike malls, these retail districts have more of a Main Street feel and tend to feature more upscale merchants. Thanks to Kimco's locations largely in top metropolitan markets, there's plenty of foot traffic, and with strong consumer sentiment lately, there are plenty of potential customers.

Current yield: 7.5 percent

Iron Mountain (IRM)

Iron Mountain began in the 1950s as a document storage company and recently moved into the digital age with information management and security offerings. Regular fees from clients fuel a revenue stream for IRM that supports a steady and growing dividend yield. While share prices haven't moved dramatically in the last five years, dividend payouts have surged from 27 cents quarterly in 2014 to almost 59 cents presently -- growth of 117 percent in a short time.

Current yield: 7.3 percent

Ford Motor Co. (F)

U.S. auto sales set records in 2015 and 2016, but since it has been a much rougher road for auto stocks, including Ford. Not only have sales slumped at home, they have also seen pressures abroad thanks to trade conflicts. The icing on the cake is a fundamental shift in the dynamics of the car marketplace, with a move toward electric vehicles and autonomous cars. Long-term investors know this century-old automaker has coped with rough times, including the Great Depression and the 2008 financial crisis that bankrupted competitor General Motors Co. (GM). The lower share price allows for a buying opportunity -- and a generous dividend.

Current yield: 7.2 percent

Invesco Ltd. (IVZ)

With its share price falling nearly in half in 2018, asset manager Invesco has plenty of reasons to make investors nervous. But that declining value has supercharged its yield, and the dividend may be juicy enough to attract aggressive investors. The challenge is IVZ offers exchange-traded funds that are quirky and more costly than mainstream offerings from Vanguard or Fidelity. That makes it hard for Invesco to attract investors in a volatile market and fuels concerns about how many funds investors will support. The firm's dividend is less than half of total earnings per share, so if you have the nerve, IVZ may be worth the risk.

Current yield: 7.2 percent

CenturyLink (CTL)

The telecom sector is rough for smaller players, so in 2017 CenturyLink continued its acquisition push, buying Level 3 Communications for $25 billion and taking on a huge amount of debt. Wall Street remains concerned that the company can't pay down those loans and continue to invest in its business, let along keep dividends steady, and has shied away from CTL stock as a result. Still, if you don't mind taking on the risk, it's hard for income investors to ignore the massive double-digit yield from this S&P 500 component.

Current yield: 13.9 percent

S&P 500 stocks that pay great dividends.

To recap, these S&P 500 stocks are paying great dividends.

-- Altria Group (MO)

-- Macerich Co. (MAC)

-- Seagate Technology (STX)

-- Navient Corp. (NAVI)

-- AT&T (T)

-- Kimco Realty Corp. (KIM)

-- Iron Mountain (IRM)

-- Ford Motor Co. (F)

-- Invesco Ltd. (IVZ)

-- CenturyLink (CTL)