10 Top-Performing Dividend Stocks of August 2024

Dividend-paying stocks that combine healthy balance sheets with hefty yields can provide investors with steady incomes, cushion against market downturns, and grow investments at a healthy clip.

In August 2024, the top-performing dividend payers included packaged foods company Kellanova K, household and personal products company Clorox CLX, and specialty retail firm Best Buy BBY.

To find the month’s 10 best-performing income-focused stocks, we screened the Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index, which tracks the performance of the 100 highest-yielding stocks from a broad basket of consistent dividend payers.

The Top-Performing US Dividend Leaders of August 2024

1. Kellanova K
2. Clorox CLX
3. Best Buy BBY
4. Oneok OKE
5. FMC FMC
6. Carter’s CRI
7. Altria Group MO
8. WEC Energy Group WEC
9. Edison International EIX
10. Kimberly-Clark KMB

How Have Dividend Stocks Performed?

Over the past month, the Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index, which captures the 100 highest-yielding names, rose 2.4%. The broad Morningstar Dividend Composite Index gained 2.7%. In the 12 months leading up to Aug. 31, the Dividend Leaders Index gained 25.9% and the Dividend Composite Index gained 22.6%.

The overall US stock market, as measured by the Morningstar US Market Index, has gained 2.3% on the month and 26.5% on the year.

Yields and Metrics for August’s Best-Performing Dividend Stocks

Kellanova

Packaged foods company Kellanova rose 38.6% in August and gained 46.3% over the past 12 months. Trading at $80.61 per share, the stock has a forward dividend yield of 2.83%. Kellanova pays investors an annual dividend of $2.28 per share. The stock, which has a narrow economic moat, is trading near its fair value estimate of $83.50 per share, leaving it with a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Clorox

Household and personal products company Clorox rose 20.9% in August and gained 4.3% over the past 12 months. At $158.31 per share, its stock has a forward dividend yield of 3.08% and an annual dividend of $4.88 per share. The stock, which has a wide economic moat, is trading near its fair value estimate of $170 per share. It has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Best Buy

Specialty retail firm Best Buy gained 16.0% in August and rose 36.2% over the past 12 months. The stock’s $100.40 price gives it a forward dividend yield of 3.75%. Best Buy pays investors an annual dividend of $3.76 per share. With a fair value estimate of $91 per share and a narrow economic moat, the stock is fairly valued and has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Oneok

Midstream oil and gas company Oneok rose 12.0% in August and gained 47.7% over the past 12 months. Trading at $92.36 per share, Oneok stock has a forward dividend yield of 4.29% and an annual dividend of $3.96 per share. The stock, which has a narrow economic moat, is trading near its fair value estimate of $88 per share. It has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

FMC

Agricultural inputs company FMC gained 10.7% in August and fell 22.4% over the past 12 months. Trading at $64.58 per share, its forward dividend yield is 3.59%. FMC pays investors an annual dividend of $2.32 per share. The stock, which has a narrow economic moat, is trading at a 41% discount to its fair value estimate of $110 per share, leaving it significantly undervalued. It has a Morningstar Rating of 5 stars.

Carter’s

Retail company Carter’s gained 10.2% in August and fell 3.5% over the past 12 months. At $65.90 per share, Carter’s stock has a forward dividend yield of 4.86% and an annual dividend of $3.20 per share. It has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 4 stars.

Altria Group

Tobacco company Altria rose 9.7% in August and gained 30.5% over the past 12 months. Trading at $53.77 per share, Altria stock has a forward dividend yield of 7.59% and an annual dividend of $4.08 per share. The stock, which has a wide economic moat, is moderately undervalued, trading 7% below its fair value estimate of $58 per share. It has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars.

WEC Energy Group

Regulated electric company WEC Energy rose 9.1% in August and gained 14.5% over the past 12 months. Trading at $93.03 per share, WEC Energy stock has a forward dividend yield of 3.59% and pays investors an annual dividend of $3.34 per share. The stock, which has a narrow economic moat, is trading at a 3% discount to its fair value estimate of $96 per share, leaving it moderately undervalued, with a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars.

Edison International

Regulated electric company Edison gained 8.8% in August and rose 30.9% over the past 12 months. The stock’s $87.03 price gives it a forward dividend yield of 3.58%. Edison pays investors an annual dividend of $3.12 per share. With a fair value estimate of $80 per share and a narrow economic moat, the stock is fairly valued and has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

Kimberly-Clark

Household and personal products company Kimberly-Clark rose 7.1% in August and gained 16.0% over the past 12 months. At $144.66 per share, Kimberly-Clark has a forward dividend yield of 3.37% and an annual dividend of $4.88 per share. The stock, which has a narrow economic moat, is trading near its fair value estimate of $145 per share. It has a Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.

What Is the Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index?

The Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index captures the performance of the 100 highest-yielding stocks with consistent records of paying dividends and can sustain those payments.

It’s a subset of the Morningstar US Market Index (which represents 97% of equity market capitalization) that includes only securities whose dividends are qualified income. Real estate investment trusts are excluded. Companies are screened for dividend consistency and sustainability. Each must have a positive five-year dividend per share growth and a dividend coverage ratio greater than 1. The 100 highest-yielding stocks are included in the index, weighted by the dollar value of their dividends. See the full rulebook here.

The Best Dividend Stock Leaders: More Ideas to Consider

Investors who would like to find more top-performing or cheap dividend stocks can do the following:

• Review the full list of stocks in the Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index. Stocks with Morningstar Ratings of 4 or 5 stars are undervalued by our metrics.
• Use the Morningstar Investor Screener tool to find the best dividend stocks according to your specific criteria. You can search for stocks based on their dividend yields, valuation measures like price/earnings ratios, and more.
• Use Morningstar Investor to build a watchlist of the best dividend stocks and easily follow those stocks’ valuations, ratings, and dividend yields.
• Watch our dividend stock video series, hosted by David Harrell, for ideas to consider.
• When it comes to buying stocks, it’s more than just dividends. Read here how valuations and competitive advantages—known as economic moats—matter to a stock’s potential for outperformance.
• Watch this video to learn how Morningstar uses star ratings, moat ratings, and other metrics to evaluate stocks.

Companies that are not formally covered by a Morningstar analyst are statistically matched to analyst-rated companies, allowing our models to calculate a quantitative star rating.