The Smartest Dividend Stocks to Buy With $500 Right Now

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Justin Pope, The Motley Fool

Sun, May 24, 2026 astatine 1:20 PM CDT 5 min read

If you're investing successful dividend stocks, falling stock prices should beryllium euphony to your ears. As agelong arsenic the underlying businesses are stable, little stock prices mean higher starting dividend yields and much dividend income for your money.

Many consumers are struggling amid rising surviving costs and soaring involvement rates. That has weighed connected immoderate proven and durable businesses successful the user goods space. All 3 of these companies person a resilient way grounds of dependable maturation and decades of accordant dividend hikes.

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The champion part? You tin bargain each 3 for little than $500, making them arguably the smartest spot to parkland your superior close now.

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1. Realty Income

Real property is simply a timeless investment. Thanks to existent property concern trusts (REITs) specified arsenic Realty Income (NYSE: O), investors tin indirectly ain existent property and payment from dependable rental income. Realty Income is simply a salient retail-focused REIT with an exceptional estimation for its monthly dividend payments and decades-long streak of dividend increases.

Its existent dividend output of 5.2% makes it a beardown income-producer from time one. The concern has historically grown astatine a debased to mid-single-digit annualized rate, dilatory expanding the dividend implicit the years. Reinvesting that dividend unleashes further compounding, making Realty Income a currency cattle the longer you clasp shares.

REITs thin to diminution arsenic involvement rates spell up. The 10-year U.S. Treasury complaint has risen to its highest levels successful years, and that's cooled Realty Income, sending shares much than 8% disconnected their high. The banal present trades astatine astir 14 times its guided 2026 funds from operations, an charismatic terms tag for a bluish spot institution specified arsenic this one.

2. PepsiCo

Food and beverage elephantine PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) has been a victor for decades. The institution is simply a Dividend King, a subordinate of an exclusive nine of companies with astatine slightest 50 consecutive yearly dividend increases.

It's casual to spot however PepsiCo has thrived. The institution sells iconic beverage and snack brands to consumers worldwide. People ever request to devour and drink, truthful PepsiCo tends to bash good successful conscionable astir immoderate economy.

The banal has struggled immoderate implicit the past fewer years. Consumers person pulled backmost successful effect to higher prices, which person dragged connected PepsiCo's sales. However, the institution has responded, and the aboriginal results are promising. Organic income accelerated successful the archetypal 4th of 2026, rising 2.6% twelvemonth implicit year, with nett gross increasing by 8.5%.

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