The Best Dividend Stocks to Own

Morningstar’s Morning Filter highlighted three dividend stocks it considers strong long-term holders, emphasizing “economic moats,” reliable cash flow, and dividends that look sustainable when bought below fair value. The picks are Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY), Duke Energy (DUK), and Procter & Gamble (PG). For BMY, Morningstar cites a broad moat tied to patent-protected drugs, its sales force, and scale, while noting a significant patent “cliff” in the next two years; it says the payout ratio remains below 50%. Duke is described as a major U.S. utility with a narrower moat due to service-area monopolies, with a payout policy of 60% to 70% of earnings. For P&G, the firm expects high-single-digit dividend growth and an average payout ratio around 70%.