Buffett has been holding on to his positions for years if not decades to minimize taxes. We recommend investors follow a similar strategy in order to protect their investments and grow their portfolio at modest rates. This is a better alternative to investing in long-term government bonds which yield around 2%.
Here are Warren Buffett’s highest dividend stock picks. All stocks in this list have dividend yield of above 3.4%. See complete list of Buffett’s holdings here. We obtained market data from Finviz and Morningstar, and hedge fund holdings from Insider Monkey.
| Stock | Market Cap (Billion $) | Sector | Dividend Yield | P/E | Beta |
| Gannett Co (GCI) | 3.5 | Services | 5.4% | 8.2 | 2.45 |
| GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) | 115.5 | Healthcare | 4.9% | 14.8 | 0.63 |
| ConocoPhillips (COP) | 70.8 | Basic Materials | 4.7% | 6.1 | 1.14 |
| Sanofi (SNY) | 100.8 | Healthcare | 4.4% | 13.1 | 0.9 |
| Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) | 188.5 | Healthcare | 3.6% | 18.9 | 0.55 |
| Procter & Gamble (PG) | 177.4 | Consumer Goods | 3.5% | 20.2 | 0.43 |
| General Electric (GE) | 210.5 | Industrial Goods | 3.4% | 16.3 | 1.61 |
Gannett Inc (NYSE:GCI) : GCI recently traded at $14.81 with a trailing price to earnings of 8.23 and a forward price to earnings of 6.86. GCI recently posted Q2 earning per share of 56 cents, which beat estimates by 3 cents, though overall revenue of $1.31 billion was in-line with estimates and down more than 2 percent over the same period a year ago. GCI has a 5.4% dividend yield and gained 12.45% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $3.5 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 0.71. GCI has an estimated growth rate of -0.92% for this year and 6.08% for next five years. Buffett had $27 million invested in GCI shares.
Glaxosmithkline Plc (NYSE:GSK): GSK recently traded at $46.26 with a trailing price to earnings of 14.83 and a forward price to earnings of 9.66. Recently, GSK has bought Human Genome Sciences (HGSI) for $3. billion, or $14.25 per share, with the net value listed a $3 billion minus cash and debt. GSK has a 4.92% dividend yield and gained 11.31% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $115.5 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 1.68. GSK has an estimated growth rate of 8.62% for this year and 5.63% for next five years. Buffett had $68 million invested in GSK shares.
ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP): COP recently traded at $55.99 with a trailing price to earnings of 6.12 and a forward price to earnings of 8.75. COP has a 4.72% dividend yield and lost 0.02% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $70.8 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 0.43. COP has an estimated growth rate of 7.2% for this year and 2.34% for next five years. Buffett had $2.2 billion invested in COP shares.
Sanofi (NYSE:SNY): SNY recently traded at $38.08 with a trailing price to earnings of 13.13 and a forward price to earnings of 9.79. SNY has a 4.44% dividend yield and gained 0.58% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $100.8 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 0. SNY has an estimated growth rate of -0.26% for this year and 1.37% for next five years. Buffett had $157 million invested in SNY shares.
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ): JNJ recently traded at $68.63 with a trailing price to earnings of 18.85 and a forward price to earnings of 12.46. JNJ has a 3.56% dividend yield and gained 7.1% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $188.5 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 0.32. JNJ has an estimated growth rate of 7.2% for this year and 6.61% for next five years. Buffett had $1.9 billion invested in JNJ shares.
Procter & Gamble (NYSE:PG): PG recently traded at $64.73 with a trailing price to earnings of 20.17 and a forward price to earnings of 16.55. PG has a 3.47% dividend yield and gained 3.75% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $177.4 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 0.51. PG has an estimated growth rate of 2.62% for this year and 7.27% for next five years. Buffett had $4.9 billion invested in PG shares.
General Electric (NYSE:GE): GE recently traded at $19.87 with a trailing price to earnings of 16.29 and a forward price to earnings of 11.49. GE has a 3.42% dividend yield and gained 7.58% during the past 12 months. The stock has a market cap of $210.5 billion and Total Debt/Equity Ratio of 3.69. GE has an estimated growth rate of 12.34% for this year and 12.4% for next five years. Buffett had $156 million invested in GE shares.
