We recently published a list of the 15 Best Dividend Stocks to Buy for Long-Term Passive Income. In this article, we are going to take a look at where AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) stands against other best dividend stocks for long-term income.
Passive income, which refers to money earned with little ongoing effort, was once largely the domain of the wealthy – those who could afford to invest in rental properties or build up portfolios that reliably generated dividends. However, since the pandemic, the idea has gained fresh momentum, particularly among millennials and Gen Z, who are coming up with increasingly inventive ways to establish passive income sources.
According to experts, the surge in interest is being driven by a mix of tough job market conditions and the strong influence of social media. While passive income can be a viable option for some, it may not live up to the hype for everyone, as the promise of easy earnings often proves more complex in practice.
Side hustles are becoming increasingly popular as a way for people to bring in passive income. Gen Z, in particular, has moved past the misconception that passive income involves no effort. Instead, they see launching a side business as a valid way to earn money alongside a full-time job. In the past, starting a business often meant renting a physical storefront and paying for newspaper ads. Today, it’s a different story—entrepreneurs can build a website from home using platforms like Squarespace, promote products on TikTok, and hold meetings with clients or collaborators over Zoom. For Gen Z—many of whom were born in the late 1990s—these digital tools have been part of their everyday lives for as long as they can remember.
Natasha Stanley, head coach at Careershifters.org, pointed out that individuals now have far more resources at their disposal to build something independently. She observed that access to the entrepreneurial space had become more inclusive and widespread. The shift toward remote work and education during the pandemic, she noted, had also made the idea of self-employment feel more within reach for many people.
One proven way of generating passive income is through investments in dividend stocks. Companies that generate surplus profits often decide to share a portion of that money with their investors through dividends. The amount they return is typically measured using the dividend yield, which is calculated by dividing the yearly dividend payment by the current stock price.
According to Brian Bollinger, founder of Simply Safe Dividends, building a portfolio focused on dividend-paying stocks can be a game-changer. He explains that depending on regular dividend payments—rather than relying solely on profits from selling stocks—can help reduce the risk of draining your investments. Unlike managing rental properties, he notes, collecting dividends requires very little effort. He made the following comment about dividend investing:
“You could be setting yourself up quite nicely. Because not only do stocks pay a dividend, but they might increase the dividend, and they could benefit from price appreciation as a result of improving earnings outlook and so forth. It’s really about finding companies that can pay safe and rising dividends over time. And as long as that holds true over your retirement horizon, that’s a pretty, pretty nice thing to have.”
A pharmacist handing out a pharmaceutical drug to a patient in a drug store or chemist.
Our Methodology:
For this article, we scanned Insider Monkey’s database of over 1,000 hedge funds as of Q4 2024 and selected stocks with strong dividend policies, sound financials, and dividend growth histories. These stocks have a minimum of 1% yield, as of April 24. The stocks are then ranked according to hedge funds having stakes in them.
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. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 85
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) is a pharmaceutical company focused on research and innovation, developing and marketing treatments for a range of chronic and serious health conditions. Its areas of focus include oncology, gastroenterology, rheumatology, dermatology, virology, and other complex medical issues.
In the fourth quarter of 2024, AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) reported revenue of $15.1 billion, marking a 5.6% increase from the same quarter the previous year and exceeding analysts’ expectations of $14.87 billion. Despite posting a small GAAP net loss of $0.02 per share, the company’s adjusted diluted earnings were $2.16 per share, slightly surpassing the forecasted $2.13. For the full year 2024, combined sales of Skyrizi and Rinvoq grew by 51%, reaching $1.77 billion, driven by strong demand and wider adoption across global markets.
AbbVie Inc. (NYSE:ABBV) also pays a quarterly dividend of $1.64 per share, offering a dividend yield of 3.64%, as of April 24. The company has an impressive 52-year streak of dividend growth, making it an attractive choice for income-focused investors.
Overall, ABBV ranks 1st on our list of the best dividend stocks for long term passive income. While we acknowledge the potential of ABBV as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some deeply undervalued dividend stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for a deeply undervalued dividend stock that is more promising than ABBV but that trades at 10 times its earnings and grows its earnings at double digit rates annually, check out our report about the dirt cheap dividend stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
