10 Top Performing Dividend Stocks in 2024

5. Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)

Year-to-Date Return as of December 25: 64.7%

Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) is an American software company, based in Texas. The company is mainly known for its top-notch data center infrastructure crucial to AI development and is facing demand that exceeds its current supply. The company’s efficient operations have made it a preferred partner for leading AI startups, such as OpenAI, Cohere, and Elon Musk’s xAI. Despite these efforts, Oracle is still struggling to meet the high demand, with 162 data centers either operational or under construction as of the first quarter of fiscal 2025. To address this challenge, the company plans to significantly expand, aiming to grow its data center network to between 1,000 and 2,000 in the future. The stock has surged by nearly 65% since the start of 2024, which makes it one of the best performing stocks on our list.

Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) reported strong earnings in fiscal Q2 2025, with revenue totaling $14.06 billion, a 9% increase compared to the same period last year. Cloud revenue, which includes both Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), reached $5.9 billion, reflecting a 24% growth in both USD and constant currency. Within this segment, cloud infrastructure revenue (IaaS) amounted to $2.4 billion, marking an impressive 52% increase in both USD and constant currency. Oracle’s cloud revenue is expected to surpass $25 billion for the current fiscal year.

Parnassus Investments made the following comment about ORCL in its Q3 2024 investor letter:

“Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) announced second-quarter results that exceeded consensus expectations, driven by growth in its cloud infrastructure business, which is benefiting from demand for AI applications. Investor sentiment was further bolstered by the company’s announcement of a new partnership with Amazon.”

Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) has a strong cash position which supports its dividend payments. The company has paid regular dividends to shareholders since 2009. Over the last 12 months, its operating cash flow was $20.3 billion and its free cash flow during this period amounted to $9.5 billion. It offers a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.93%, as of December 25.

Of the 900 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey at the end of Q3 2024, 91 funds held stakes in Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL), compared with 93 in the preceding quarter. These stakes are collectively valued at over $7 billion. Among these hedge funds, Ken Fisher’s Fisher Asset Management was the company’s leading stakeholder in Q3.