3 Best Dividend Stocks With 6%+

Yields And Attractive Valuations

Apr 30, 2026

PINE, EPR, RMR

Steven Cress, Quant Team

SA Quant Strategist

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Summary

• In today’s income landscape, selectivity remains critical. High yields can signal risk, but stocks with strong fundamentals prove that higher yields can coexist with discounted valuations.
• Higher oil prices can create downside pressure on even the best dividend stocks, as investors price in higher-for-longer interest rates.
• However, the underlying cash flow strength, FFO growth, and balance sheet health in these Strong Buy stocks help mitigate risk.
• For patient investors, periods of volatility and price weakness may offer attractive entry points, allowing the opportunity to lock in attractive yields ahead of a more normalized macro environment.
• I am Steven Cress, Head of Quantitative Strategies at Seeking Alpha. I manage the quant ratings and factor grades on stocks and ETFs in Seeking Alpha Premium. I also lead Alpha Picks, which selects the two most attractive stocks to buy each month, and also determines when to sell them.

Best Dividend Stocks: Yield + Quality = ‘Sweet Spot’

Investors looking for the best dividend stocks are often challenged to balance higher yield and higher risk. So, finding quality stocks within this space requires identifying a sweet spot where yields are high but risk is not elevated. Broadly speaking, yields much higher than 6% can signal risk around fundamental weakness or declining growth potential. However, certain sectors, such as real estate, can often support yields in the 9-10% range without sacrificing quality. This is where focusing on Strong Quant Buys with attractive Dividend Grades comes into play.

“Quantamental” Analysis Outperforms VIG Over Time

During the last 12 years, Quant’s back-tested strategy has delivered very impressive returns, beating the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation ETF (VIG). Looking ahead, the dividend environment in 2026 remains dependent on Federal Reserve policy and geopolitical uncertainty, which has created volatility in both the fixed-income and high-yield spaces. However, with inflation potentially leveling off and interest rates expected to moderate by year-end, the backdrop for selectively owning high-quality, high-yielding dividend stocks remains attractive. While risk remains in the short term, buying opportunities exist for stocks with solid fundamentals.

How I Chose the Best Dividend Stocks With 6%+ Yields

To select the best dividend stocks to feature in this article, I used the Seeking Alpha Stock Screener and chose the pre-selected Top Quant Dividend Stocks and filtered for Quant Strong Buys. I then selected stocks with forward yields above 6%, high Valuation Factor Grades, and attractive Dividend Grades.

1. Alpine Income Property Trust, Inc. (PINE)

• Yield: 6.29%
• Market Capitalization: $338.82M
• Quant Rating: Strong Buy
• Quant Sector Ranking (as of 04/30/2026): 11 out of 171
• Quant Industry Ranking (as of 04/30/2026): 1 out of 11
• Sector: Real Estate
• Industry: Diversified REITs

Beginning with a small but impressive dividend stock selling at an attractive valuation, Alpine Income Property Trust is a net lease REIT that owns single-tenant retail properties leased to high quality companies under long-term agreements. The company’s portfolio consists of solid retailers, such as Wal-Mart (WMT) and Home Depot (HD), supporting stable and predictable rental income. PINE’s dividend yield tops 6% and is backed by reliable occupancy rates and conservative payout ratios. Despite these strengths, the stock trades at an attractive valuation, which is where we begin the Quant analysis.

PINE’s ‘A-‘ Valuation Factor Grade and top industry rank are well supported by its forward P/FFO valuation of 9.02, which represents more than a 35% discount to the sector median. This signals that the market is pricing more risk for the stock likely due to its small-cap status. However, when we look at Alpine’s forward growth estimates, a different story unfolds, helping to support the company’s attractive Dividend Growth Grade.

For a REIT like Alpine Income, FFO (funds from operations) is a core earnings driver, so its 7.60% Forward FFO Growth, which is more than double the sector median, more than supports PINE’s valuation. Furthermore, this supports AFFO expansion and dividend increases, reinforcing the 6%-plus yield. When interest rates finally stabilize, net lease REITs like PINE could see further growth along with continued attractive yields. The combination of steady cash flows and discounted pricing highlights the appeal of larger, mid-cap REITs with similar attributes.

2. EPR Properties (EPR)

• Yield: 6.60%
• Market Capitalization: $4.31B
• Quant Rating: Strong Buy
• Quant Sector Ranking (as of 04/30/2026): 9 out of 171
• Quant Industry Ranking (as of 04/30/2026): 2 out of 3
• Sector: Real Estate
• Industry: Other Specialized REITs

EPR Properties is a specialty REIT that invests in experiential real estate, such as movie theaters, amusement parks, and ski resorts. While this niche space was once associated with higher risk, a combination of a resilient consumer and EPR’s portfolio diversification and consistent rent collection has restored investor confidence. The company’s 6.6% dividend yield is supported by strong cash and tenant health. Meanwhile, its valuation and dividend growth potential remain attractive.

Starting with EPR’s 10.46 forward P/FFO, this valuation metric suggests a discount of about 25% to the sector median. With growth improving and strong (its ‘A-‘ Growth Factor Grade has jumped up from a ‘C’ in three months), EPR appears ready to support its attractive 6.6% yield. This helps explain the REIT’s sector-leading Dividend Growth metrics.

EPR’s forward FFO Growth of 4.66% is significantly ahead of sector peers, which weigh in at an average of 2.91, and its Dividend Growth Rate – CAGR – over the past five years is more than 10x the sector. With consumer spending remaining resilient through recent geopolitical concerns and the potential for normalization later in the year, EPR offers a unique blend of income and recovery driven upside. That combination leads to a smaller-cap real estate company that operates in a different space but with similarly compelling valuation and yield profiles.

3. The RMR Group (RMR)

• Yield: 10.37%
• Market Capitalization: $556.53M
• Quant Rating: Strong Buy
• Quant Sector Ranking (as of 04/30/2026): 5 out of 171
• Quant Industry Ranking (as of 04/30/2026): 1 out of 3
• Sector: Real Estate
• Industry: Diversified Real Estate Activities

The RMR Group is not a REIT but an alternative asset management company specializing in real estate and operating companies. So, rather than owning and operating the real estate directly, it earns management fees tied to assets that are owned by REITs. This asset light model generates strong margins and supports its high dividend, offering investors exposure to real estate without the downsides of direct property ownership. RMR has demonstrated consistent fee collection and cash flow stability. This status leads to dividend safety and is complemented by an attractive valuation.

RMR’s forward P/E of 23.62 offers more than a 23% discount to the sector median, and its 4-Year Average Dividend Yield of 10.14% provides historical evidence of its ability to maintain its high dividend. While its ‘C-‘ Dividend Growth Score indicates average growth compared to sector peers, the real estate company’s yield is already high, and its Dividend Safety Score is also attractive.

According to our back-testing, companies with a Dividend Safety Score of at least ‘A-‘ or better have averted a dividend cut 99% of the time. RMR receives a solid ‘A’ grade for dividend safety, which is supported by an FFO Interest Coverage Ratio of 6.36, which is more than double the sector median. This suggests RMR can easily meet its debt obligations, which is a strong signal that its dividend is reinforced by healthy underlying cash flows. For income investors, this presents an opportunity to capture both yield and valuation upside. Taken together, these ideas highlight a broader theme of buying opportunities across the real estate sector.

Conclusion: High Yields and Quality in Best Dividend Stocks

In today’s income landscape, selectivity remains critical. High yields can signal risk, but stocks with strong fundamentals like PINE, EPR, and RMR demonstrate that higher yields can coexist with discounted valuations and attractive Quant Dividend Scores. A near-term risk worthy of consideration is that higher oil prices can create downside pressure on even the best dividend stocks as investors price in higher-for-longer interest rates. However, the underlying cash flow strength, FFO growth, and balance sheet health in these Strong Buy stocks help mitigate risk. For patient investors, periods of volatility and price weakness may offer attractive entry points, allowing the opportunity to lock in attractive yields ahead of a more normalized macro environment.

How the UK State Pension measures up against other countries — and why it’s not enough

Mark Hartley weighs the UK State Pension against other nations, revealing why it’s important for Britons to explore additional options.

Posted by Mark Hartley

The Motley Fool.

Currently, the UK State Pension is roughly £12,548 a year before tax. That’s a useful safety net, but can it fully fund retirement? Let’s see how it compares to other countries.

Where the UK stands globally

Each year, the Mercer CFA Institute Global Pension Index ranks systems on adequacy, sustainability and integrity.

In 2025, the UK came 12th with a score of 72.2 – solid, but not world‑beating — while The Netherlands takes the top position, thanks to generous benefits and strong regulation.

• Netherlands (1st): 85.4
• Singapore (4th): 80.8
• Australia (7th): 77.6
• United Kingdom (12th): 72.2
• United States (30th): 61.1

Among the G7 countries, our State Pension is often considered the least generous. UK retirees get only about 22% of average earnings from the state, the lowest in the group.

The upside is that our system scores better on long‑term sustainability because it leans more heavily on workplace and private pensions rather than pushing most of the cost onto the state.

Still, to supplement a State Pension, many people build private savings by investing in the stock market. How does that work?

Retirement investment accounts

For British investors, two popular options are a Stocks and Shares ISA and the Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP). Both allow investments in shares, funds and other assets, but they serve slightly different purposes.

With an ISA, money can be withdrawn at any time, and any gains or dividends are tax-free. A SIPP, on the other hand, is designed specifically for retirement. Contributions receive tax relief, but funds are usually locked away until at least age 55 (rising to 57).

Please note that tax treatment depends on the individual circumstances of each client and may be subject to change in future. The content in this article is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended to be, neither does it constitute, any form of tax advice. Readers are responsible for carrying out their own due diligence and for obtaining professional advice before making any investment decisions.

In short, ISAs are more flexible, while SIPPs offer upfront tax advantages.

So how can an investor aim for the best outcome?

Building a retirement portfolio

Whether in a SIPP or ISA, stock selection is critcal. A balanced portfolio should include some defensive and income stocks to help reduce volatility.

But steady growth stocks are key to building wealth. One example is Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (LSE: CCEP). As a major distributor of softdrinks across large parts of Europe and beyond, it enjoys steady demand and revenue.

The shares are up 91.8% in five years (equivalent to 13.9% annualised), and it has 39 years of uninterrupted dividend payments. The current yield’s only 2.8% but is well covered by earnings. 

Price-wise, it looks cheap, with a price-to-earnings growth (PEG) ratio of only 0.45. Profitability looks good too, with a return on equity (ROE) of 24.42%.

So to recap:

• Steady earnings resulting in high profitability.
• A fair-to-low price with growth potential.
• Moderate income appeal.

Of course, no investment is risk-free. Consumer demand for soft drinks can fluctuate, and currency movements can affect international earnings. More recently, sugar and health regulations post additional risks.

But overall, consistent demand backed by years of solid performance is why it’s the type of stock worth considering for a retirement portfolio.

The bottom line

Building a decent retirement pot through an ISA or SIPP takes time, patience and regular contributions. Early on, growth matters most, so many people tilt towards quality companies with room to expand. Later, reliable dividends can help turn that pot into a steady income.

By spreading investments across sectors, blending defensive and growth shares, and making regular monthly contributions, the State Pension becomes a helpful safety net – rather than your only lifeline.

Want to start buying shares? How good are you at these 3 things?

This trio of simple questions can help provide some food for thought to anyone who wonders whether they are ready to start buying shares.

Posted by Christopher Ruane

Published 3 May, 11:50 am BST

You’re reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool’s Premium Investing Services.

Lots of people dream of investing in the stock market – but not all of them ever actually start buying shares.

Different investors get different results. For some people who end up not investing, the opportunity cost of the missed chance is enormous.

Should you buy Apple shares today?

Here are three skills I think it can be helpful for an investor to have before they make their first move in the stock market.

Setting goals and devising a strategy

How good are you at knowing what you are trying to achieve, implementing a plan to try to achieve it, and modifying what you do along the way based on what happens?

Investing can involve a steep learning curve and, over time, most investors evolve their style.

But I think it still helps, from the day one starts buying shares, to have some sort of plan about how to invest and what success looks like.

Spotting undervalued opportunities

Ultimately, investing tends to boil down to a number of key elements and an important one is being able to buy something for less than it turns out to be worth.

Ideally, that would be much less than it turns out to be worth.

Simple though that may sound, it can be devilishly difficult in practice. Knowing what a company’s real value is today can already be hard enough – but successful investing also requires someone to assess what it might be worth in future.

Learning how to identify great opportunities that have been undervalued by the market is a skill — and potentially a very lucrative one.

Assessing risks as they really are, not as we’d like them to be

One thing that unites many experienced investors and those that start buying shares for the first time is an inability to weigh risks properly.

When we buy shares, naturally that is because we think we see an opportunity. That can lead the mind to underplay some of the risks involved.

Truly great investors take risks seriously. They do not start buying shares in a company or industry without having weighed such risks thoroughly.

Always look down first.

CTY

If you want to buy CTY, looking at their history gives you some guidance, if e.g. you want to buy at 5% plus you may never have a position.

During the covid crash, you could have bought around £2.80 and the yield would have been 6.5%.

Now 1.5% – currently 2.5%, if you intend to buy and hold forever it makes a big difference to your SNOWBALL. Of course it’s always easier with hindsight but if you bought the yield, you would have a position, even though the price might have fallen further.

MRCH

LWDB

If you want to trade a higher yielder but want to add some safety to your snowball, you could pair trade with a lower yielder to achieve a blended yield of 7%.

FSFL

You do not need to take big risks with your hard earned.

At the start of 2009 you decided to invest 5k in CTY because even back then they had a long history of increasing their dividends and to KISS, you decide to re-invest the dividends into the share, knowing that even if the price falls, you get more shares for your money and therefore a higher yield.

Your 5k would now have a value of £32,500.

The current yield is 4%, income of £1,300, a yield on seed capital of 26%

If you want to buy it may better to wait for the next market downturn and the yield will increase.

History of the SNOWBALL.

All trades for the SNOWBALL are posted here as soon as they are made.

All buys include a cost of £10 and sales a cost of £5, although you should be able to trader at a lower cost. Costs add up over the years but if sales are made at a profit, however small, it’s the markets money and not yours, as a profit is not a profit until the underlying share is sold.

The SNOWBALL’S first full year of earning dividends was 2023 and the current updated fcast for this calendar year is 12k.

If we look forward to the next 4 years the income stream will be around 16k, hopefully it will be ahead of the fcast.

That equates to a yield of 16% of seed capital, to make comparisons easier no new funds will be added to the SNOWBALL.

Once the SNOWBALL earns 15k of income every year, future dividends could be re-invested into safer but lower yielding shares, as the SNOWBALL prepares itself to drawdown the cash rather than re-invest it.

At present the SNOWBALL invests mainly in UK Investment Trusts as they have both higher yields and trade at bigger discounts to NAV.

IF this no longer applies the dividends will be re-invested into higher yielding ETF’S.

If you have more years of re-investing, you should build up an income stream and have a surplus to re-invest even though you are in drawdown.

Why This BDC Trades Below NAV—for Now

by Tim Plaehn

April 29, 2026 6:00

Main Street Capital Corp (MAIN) has been one of the best-performing stocks in the business development (BDC) sector over the long term. Because of its success, MAIN trades at a steep premium to NAV and sports a lower yield than all of its BDC peers. So, I want to introduce you to a MAIN alternative with some great appreciation potential and yield.

Since its 2007 IPO, the MAIN share price has appreciated by 268%, and with dividends reinvested, it has provided a 1,630% total return. That total return works out to a 16.6% compound annual growth rate.

Looking at shorter-term past performance, its five-year total return was 91.8%, or 13.9% annual compounding. The returns from MAIN have far outrun the dividend yield, which is 5.7% based on the current regular monthly dividend rate.

The MAIN returns have been boosted by steady NAV appreciation and regular, significant supplemental dividend payments.

On January 30, 2025, Main Street Capital announced the public offering and NYSE listing of shares of MSC Income Fund (MSIF). MSIF is an externally managed BDC managed by Main Street’s registered investment advisor.

The MSIF IPO price was $15.53 per share. The BDC currently trades for $12.86. Since the IPO, MSIF has not been a great pick for investors.

However, what the investing public has failed to grasp is that the MSIF portfolio mirrors the investments held by Main Street Capital. For example, here is an excerpt from a recent Main Street press release (emphasis added):    

  Main Street Capital Corporation (NYSE: MAIN) (“Main Street”     ) is pleased to announce that it recently completed a follow-on investment in its existing portfolio company, UBM ParentCo, LLC, doing business as United Business Mail (“UBM” or the “Company), a leading provider of “marketing mail” commingle services, specializing in optimizing postage, transportation and delivery performance for large-scale mailers. Main Street, along with its co-investor MSC Income Fund, Inc. (NYSE: MSIF) (“MSIF”), made the follow-on investment in UBM to support the Company’s strategic acquisition of a leading national provider of asset-light palletized mail consolidation, mail optimization services, freight brokerage, and warehousing and distribution for business to business, or B2B, and business to consumer, or B2C, customers. Main Street’s portion of the investment consisted of an additional $15.6 million first lien, senior secured term debt investment. Main Street and MSIF initially invested in UBM in December 2025.

MSIF trades at a deep discount to the MAIN valuation. MSIF trades at 83% of NAV, compared with MAIN’s premium valuation. MSIF has a current yield of 10.9%.

My thesis is that as MSIF develops a longer track record, and investors start to realize that its portfolio reflects the MAIN investments, the MSIF share price will climb to a premium to the current NAV of $15.55.  

ABOUT HIGH YIELD DIGEST

High Yield Digest is your weekly shortcut to income. Each issue highlights 10 of the highest-yielding stocks about to go ex-dividend in the coming week, complete with key dates and payout details.

The Dividend Manifesto
Issued by the Dividend Society, 1932

Preamble
The true investor seeks not the thrill of speculation but the quiet compounding of patience. He measures success not by ticker chatter but by the steady rhythm of income earned and reinvested.

Articles of Faith

Yield is character. A dividend paid is proof of discipline, prudence, and profit.

Reinvestment is renewal. Each pound returned to the ledger is a seed for future harvests.

Volatility is vanity. The market’s noise fades; the dividend endures.

Patience is profit. Time is the ally of the income‑minded.

Integrity of capital. Guard the principal; let the income speak for itself.

Closing Declaration
Let this manifesto stand as a creed for those who build wealth not in haste but in habit — the investors who understand that true prosperity is paid in instalments, not in applause.

What can we learn from Warren Buffett about investing for retirement?

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett clearly isn’t one for retiring early. But his stock market insights could help others to do just that.

Posted by

Christopher Ruane

Published 2 May

You’re reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool’s Premium Investing Services.

.

When it comes to retiring, Warren Buffett might seem like an odd source of inspiration. After all, the billionaire investor is still working in his nineties.

However, for many people, retiring in general and especially retiring early involves making smart decisions about building enough wealth to be able to do so.

On that topic, Buffett can certainly provide lots of wisdom.

Risks are risks at any stage

A lot of people think that, closer to retirement, investment portfolios ought to become less risky. The corollary of that way of thinking suggests that, when people are further from retirement and so have longer investing timeframes, they can afford to take more risks.

There’s a logic to that, in my view. But contrast it to Buffett’s approach. The sorts of companies he has been investing in in his later decades are similar to the ones he was buying at a much younger age.

Sure, there are exceptions: Apple was more tech-facing than most of Buffett’s historical large investments. But in general, Buffett’s been buying the same sorts of firms for many years, since he was a young man.

They tend to be long-established, large, have a competitive advantage and a proven business model. He has also stuck to a limited number of business sectors for most of his investments. One lesson I draw from that is risk tolerance. If an investment is too risky, arguably that is not because the investor is at a certain age, it is because it is too risky.

When an investor figures out their personal risk tolerance and sticks to it, they are less likely to lose money by making investments they know do not really suit them, on the pretext that time is on their side.

ABC: always be compounding!

Time can be on their side though. In investment terms, time can be a mixed bag. Depending on what you do, it may either work for you or against you.

Buffett is a big believer in compounding, which is basically reinvesting dividends (or capital gains) to buy more shares. Combined with a long-term approach to investing, that has allowed him to reap serious financial rewards from some of his investments over the course of decades.

The Midas touch in action

An example is his investment in Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO). Buffett started buying shares in the company for his investment vehicle Berkshire Hathaway in the 1980s. Indeed, it is over 30 years since he bought the last one.

He has not bought for decades – but he did not sell either. Instead, he just let the dividends roll in year after year.

And roll in they have. Coca-Cola has grown its dividend per share annually since before Buffett owned it. Last year alone, Berkshire’s original $1.3bn investment in Coca-Cola generated well over $700m of dividends.

That was not always guaranteed to happen (nor is it now, at Coca-Cola or any company). Changing diet habits remain a risk to Coca-Cola’s sales.

But it also has the hallmarks of a classic Buffett pick. Its famous brand, global bottling networks and unique recipe are all strong competitive advantages. They give it pricing power, allowing it to make the profits that fund those dividends.

The UK market is closed on Monday but the SNOWBALL will still earn £100 over the 3 day period.

Benjamin Graham