We recently compiled a list of the 12 Most Reliable Dividend Stocks To Buy According to Hedge Funds. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) stands against the other dividend stocks.

The year 2024 proved favorable for dividends, even though the Dividend Aristocrats Index lagged behind the broader market. Throughout the year, US companies consistently increased or upheld their dividend payouts. In addition, several major tech firms began offering dividends, signaling to investors that it’s possible for a company to focus on both growth and shareholder returns. By September 30, 2024, approximately 80% of the companies in the S&P index were distributing dividends, a figure that has remained fairly stable over the past decade. Notably, nearly 24% of these dividend-paying firms were in the technology sector, a significant increase from 13% ten years ago. Sectors such as healthcare and industrials also experienced notable growth in the number of companies offering dividends. This broader distribution of dividends has expanded the range of investment opportunities, giving equity-income investors more access to high-growth, dynamic, and innovative companies. Given these developments, analysts remain optimistic about their performance heading into 2025.

Also read: 10 Best Canadian Dividend Stocks to Buy For Income Investors

Analysts note that, from a broad perspective, earnings growth has traditionally been the primary driver of dividends. Last year saw strong earnings growth, and they anticipate an even better performance in 2025. Goldman predicts an 11% increase in earnings per share for this year, up from an estimated 8% in 2024. This is expected to result in a 7% rise in dividends, compared to a 6% increase last year. Ohsung Kwon, a US equity strategist at BofA Securities, offers a more optimistic outlook, forecasting a 12% boost in dividends this year, fueled by accelerating earnings growth.

Dividends historically accounted for 40% of the market’s total return from 1936 to 2012 but have contributed only 16% over the past ten years, according to a research note from BofA Securities released late last year. Looking forward, Kwon anticipates that dividends will have a more significant impact on total returns compared to the previous decade.

Dividends hold particular significance, especially as the broader market has experienced consecutive gains of over 20%, a scenario not seen since the late 1990s. Moreover, the low payout ratio, currently at 29% compared to the historical average of 50%, suggests there is considerable potential for companies to increase their dividend payouts. Kwon pointed out that another key factor supporting dividend investing is the growing number of retired baby boomers seeking income. With cash products yielding around 4%, there is a strong demand for dividends, as investors are looking for immediate cash returns and are pressuring companies to increase their dividend distributions.

This optimism about dividend stocks is largely rooted in their historical performance, as they have been instrumental in reducing overall portfolio volatility and can help cushion losses when stock prices decline. Research indicates that dividend-paying stocks often outperform their non-dividend-paying counterparts during bear markets, such as during the tech bubble burst in the early 2000s and the global financial crisis. This may be because companies that pay dividends are typically larger, more established, and more profitable, making them more resilient than the broader market.

From October 2019 to September 2024, a period marked by significant fluctuations in the market’s total performance, equity income funds demonstrated lower volatility and reduced downside risk compared to the broader market. Given this, we will discuss the most reliable dividend stocks to invest in.

Our Methodology:

For this list, we used a stock screener to identify companies with a history of dividend growth spanning over 10 years. From this group, we selected companies offering dividend yields of at least 1% as of January 12. From that selection, we identified the ten stocks that hedge funds favored the most during the third quarter of 2024, based on data from Insider Monkey’s database. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of 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 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points. (see more details here).

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 76

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) ranks ninth on our list of the best dividend stocks. The American multinational chain of coffeehouses specializes in a wide range of coffee beverages. While the economy, particularly consumer spending, has demonstrated resilience over the past year amid ongoing uncertainty, Starbucks hasn’t seen the same level of success. The retail coffee market’s intense competition and fragmentation present significant challenges for the company. In the US, the top five coffee chains together control less than half of the market, providing consumers with numerous alternatives to major chains. With no barriers to switching, customers can easily opt for other choices, leaving Starbucks with minimal room for mistakes—an issue that appears to be impacting its performance. In the past 12 months, the stock has shown a modest return of 0.29%.

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) delivered mixed results in fiscal Q4 2024. The company reported $9.07 billion in revenue, a 3.2% decline compared to the same quarter last year. Despite this, its cash position remained steady, with $6 billion in operating cash flow. During the quarter, the company expanded its footprint by adding 722 net new stores, bringing its total to 40,199 locations. Of these, 52% are company-operated, while 48% are run under licensing agreements.

Invesco Distributors, Inc. highlighted Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) in its Q3 2024 investor letter. Here is what the firm has to say:

“Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX): The coffee retailer has struggled with China’s economic softness, declining sales and weaker US store traffic that have hampered revenues and profit margins. However, we believe the company has several positive, long-term catalysts, including strong growth in store count, better labor relations, improving productivity from labor, technology and innovation, and easier future earnings comparisons. We believed a management change was imminent, and shortly after we purchased the stock, Starbucks named a new CEO, which was seemingly greeted enthusiastically by investors.”

On December 11, Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX) declared a quarterly dividend of $0.61 per share, which was in line with its previous dividend. The company’s dividend growth streak spans over 14 years. The stock supports a dividend yield of 2.64%, as of January 12.

As of the close of Q3 2024, 76 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey held stakes in Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX), up from 70 in the previous quarter. These stakes are collectively valued at over $3.2 billion.

Overall SBUX ranks 9th on our list of the most reliable dividend stocks to buy according to hedge funds. While we acknowledge the potential of SBUX as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than SBUX but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock. 

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.