How to Maximize Your Retirement Portfolio with These Top-Ranked Dividend Stocks

Here's an eye-opening statistic: older Americans are more afraid of running out of money than of death itself.

And retirees have good reason to be worried about making their assets last. People are living longer, so that money has to cover a longer period. Making matters worse, income generated using tried - and - true retirement planning approaches may not cover expenses these days. That means seniors must dip into principal to meet living expenses.

Retirement investing approaches of the past don't work today.

For many years, bonds or other fixed-income assets could produce the yield needed to provide solid income for retirement needs. However, these yields have dwindled over time: 10-year Treasury bond rates in the late 1990s were around 6.50%, but today, that rate is a thing of the past, with a slim likelihood of rates making a comeback in the foreseeable future.

That means if you had $1 million in 10-year Treasuries, the difference in yield between 1999 and today is more than $1 million.

And lower bond yields aren't the only potential problem seniors are facing. Today's retirees aren't feeling as secure as they once did about Social Security, either. Benefit checks will still be coming for the foreseeable future, but based on current estimates, Social Security funds will run out of money in 2035.

How can you avoid dipping into your principal when the investments you counted on in retirement aren't producing income? You can only cut your expenses so far, and the only other option is to find a different investment vehicle to generate income.

Invest in Dividend Stocks

As we see it, dividend-paying stocks from generally low-risk, top notch companies are a brilliant way to create steady and solid income streams to supplant low risk, low yielding Treasury and fixed-income alternatives.

Look for stocks that have paid steady, increasing dividends for years (or decades), and have not cut their dividends even during recessions.

One way to identify suitable candidates is to look for stocks with an average dividend yield of 3%, and positive average annual dividend growth. Many stocks increase dividends over time, helping to offset the effects of inflation.

Here are three dividend-paying stocks retirees should consider for their nest egg portfolio.

Grupo Cibest (CIB) is currently shelling out a dividend of $1.39 per share, with a dividend yield of 5.22%. This compares to the Diversified Operations industry's yield of 0% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.34%. The company's annualized dividend growth in the past year was 66.56%. Check Grupo Cibest dividend history here>>>

H&R Block (HRB) is paying out a dividend of $0.46 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 3.13% compared to the Consumer Services - Miscellaneous industry's yield of 0% and the S&P 500's yield. The annualized dividend growth of the company was 17.19% over the past year. Check H&R Block dividend history here>>>

Currently paying a dividend of $0.68 per share, ONE Gas (OGS) has a dividend yield of 3.39%. This is compared to the Utility - Gas Distribution industry's yield of 3.39% and the S&P 500's current yield. Annualized dividend growth for the company in the past year was 1.52%. Check ONE Gas dividend history here>>>

But aren't stocks generally more risky than bonds?

Yes, that's true. As a broad category, bonds carry less risk than stocks. However, the stocks we are talking about-dividend-paying stocks from high-quality companies-can generate income over time and also mitigate the overall volatility of your portfolio compared to the stock market as a whole.

A silver lining to owning dividend stocks for your retirement portfolio is that many companies, especially blue chip stocks, increase their dividends over time, helping offset the effects of inflation on your potential retirement income.

Thinking about dividend-focused mutual funds or ETFs? Watch out for fees.

You may be thinking, "I like this dividend strategy, but instead of investing in individual stocks, I'm going to find a dividend-focused mutual fund or ETF." This approach can make sense, but be aware that some mutual funds and specialized ETFs carry high fees, which may reduce your dividend gains or income, and defeat the goal of this dividend investment approach. If you do wish to invest in a fund, do your research to find the best-quality dividend funds with the lowest fees.

Bottom Line

Whether you select high-quality, low-fee funds or stocks, seeking the steady income of dividend-paying equities can potentially offer you a path to a better and more stress-free retirement.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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