Major U.S. indexes performed well in 2024, thanks to talk around artificial intelligence and interest rate cuts. However, macro uncertainty may weigh on investor sentiment in 2025. In this scenario, investors looking for regular income can consider adding dividend stocks to their portfolio.
Top Wall Street analysts can help investors select attractive dividend stocks that are backed by strong fundamentals and offer stable payouts.
Here are three high-dividend stocks that top Wall Street pros are paying attention to, as tracked by TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on past performance.
ares capital
We start with Ares Capital (ARCC), a specialist finance provider that provides financing solutions to private mid-market businesses. With a quarterly dividend of 48 cents per share, ARCC stock yields 8.7%.
In a research note on business development company (BDC)’s 2025 outlook, RBC Capital analyst Kenneth Lee reiterated his Buy rating on ARCC with a price target of $23, and said the stock is RBC’s He said that it is his favorite BDC stock in 2025.
“ARCC has a leading position in the BDC space due to its economies of scale, strong origination engine of its Ares Direct Lending platform (covering all MM segments), and nearly 20 years of experience and proven track record in this field. ,” Lee said.
The analyst highlighted ARCC’s ability to provide clients with flexible capital across a variety of financing solutions as a differentiator from its peers. Mr. Lee also pointed to other strengths such as the firm’s strong history of managing risk through cycles, access to Ares Credit Group’s resources, and advantages of scale given that it is the largest publicly traded BDC by assets. Also mentioned.
Lee also emphasized that ARCC’s dividend is backed by the company’s core earnings per share and underlying net realized profits.
Mr. Lee is ranked #23 out of over 9,200 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His rating is profitable 71% of the time, with an average return of 18.1%. See Ares Capital’s ownership structure on TipRanks.
conocophilips
We move on to ConocoPhillips (COP), an oil and gas exploration and production company. In October, the company announced better-than-expected third-quarter profits and raised its full-year production outlook to reflect the impact of operational efficiency.
Additionally, ConocoPhillips increased its quarterly dividend by 34% to 78 cents per share and increased its existing share buyback authorization by up to $20 billion. Based on an annual dividend of $3.12 per share, COP stock has a dividend yield of 3%.
Mizuho analyst Nitin Kumar upgraded ConocoPhillips stock from hold to buy and raised his price target from $132 to $134 in a research note on the U.S. oil and gas outlook. “COP offers an enviable combination of long-term inventory, fortress balance sheet and peer-leading cash returns,” Kumar said.
The analyst noted that the decline in COP stock since the announcement of the Marathon Oil acquisition indicates that the modest inventory dilution from the acquisition has already been factored into the stock price. Additionally, Kumar said the company is confident of achieving transaction synergies that are significantly higher than expected. Specifically, ConocoPhillips expects to generate approximately $1 billion in synergies annually, double its original goal of $500 million.
Kumar also highlighted that COP expects capital expenditures to be less than $13 billion in 2025, which could lead to additional free cash flow. Analysts believe that with its growing LNG presence and strong commercial marketing business, the company is well-positioned to benefit from rising global LNG demand and international prices.
Kumar is ranked #336 out of over 9,200 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings are profitable 58% of the time, with an average return of 12.1%. See ConocoPhillips insider trading activity on TipRanks.
Darden Restaurants
Let’s take a look at the end Darden Restaurants (DRI) is a restaurant company that owns popular brands such as Olive Garden, Longhorn Steakhouse, Yard House, and Cheddar’s Scratch Kitchen. The company recently announced its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal 2025 and raised its full-year sales outlook.
Along with its second quarter fiscal 2025 results, the company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.40 per share, payable on February 3rd. With a quarterly dividend of $1.40 per share (annualized dividend of $5.60), DRI yields approximately 3%.
Following the results, BTIG analyst Peter Saleh reiterated his Buy rating on DRI stock, raised his price target from $195 to $205, and said, “Management has made several changes to achieve its full-year outlook.” We have the means,” he said. Although the results were encouraging, he believes the impact of the hurricane and Thanksgiving calendar changes overshadowed some strong sales trends.
The analyst highlighted the strong performance of the LongHorn Steakhouse and Olive Garden chains, with increased visits from low- and moderate-income consumers representing a notable upturn from trends observed in recent quarters. He pointed out that it reflects the
Among other positives, Saleh said Uber Eats delivery has rolled out faster than expected and Darden’s restrained pricing has narrowed the value gap with quick-service restaurants. Mentioned. Analysts expect all these positive factors to drive strong performance in the second half of fiscal 2025. Overall, Saleh views Darden as a leading restaurateur with consistent profit growth at a favorable valuation.
Saleh is ranked #366 out of over 9,200 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His rating is profitable 62% of the time, with an average return of 11.8%. See Darden Restaurants’ hedge fund activity on TipRanks.
