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Zacks.com featured highlights include HCA Healthcare, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, H&R Block, Leidos and The TJX Companies

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – August 2, 2024 – Stocks in this week’s article are HCA Healthcare Inc. (HCA - Free Report) , Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TSM - Free Report) , H&R Block Inc. (HRB - Free Report) , Leidos Holdings Inc. (LDOS - Free Report) and The TJX Companies Inc. (TJX - Free Report) .

5 Top-Ranked Dividend Stocks for Growth of Your Portfolio

The stock market has witnessed weakness in recent weeks. Against such a backdrop, investors are increasingly exploring strategies that will help them protect their portfolios from downsides. Nothing seems better than the strategy of dividend investing.

Picking stocks with a history of dividend growth leads to a healthy portfolio with a greater scope of capital appreciation as opposed to simple dividend-paying stocks or those with high yields. We have selected five dividend growth stocks — HCA Healthcare Inc., Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd., H&R Block Inc., Leidos Holdings Inc. and The TJX Companies Inc. — that could be solid choices for your portfolio.

A Look at the Strategy

Stocks that have a strong history of dividend growth belong to mature companies, which are less susceptible to large swings in the market and thus act as a hedge against economic or political uncertainty, as well as stock market volatility. At the same time, these offer downside protection with their consistent increase in payouts.

Additionally, these stocks have superior fundamentals that make dividend growth a quality and promising investment for the long term. These include a sustainable business model, a long track of profitability, rising cash flows, good liquidity, a strong balance sheet and some value characteristics. Further, a history of strong dividend growth indicates that a dividend increase is likely in the future.

Although these stocks do not necessarily have the highest yields, they have outperformed for a longer period than the broader stock market or any other dividend-paying stock.

Here are five of the 14 stocks that fit the bill:

Tennessee-based HCA Healthcare is the largest non-governmental operator of acute care hospitals in the United States. The company has an estimated earnings growth rate of 14.9% for this year and delivered an average earnings surprise of 8.24% for the past four quarters.

HCA Healthcare has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Taiwan-based Taiwan Semiconductor is the world's largest dedicated integrated circuit foundry. The company has seen a solid earnings estimate revision of 24 cents over the past 30 days for this year and has an estimated earnings growth rate of 22.97%.

TSM has a Zacks Rank #1 and a Growth Score of B.

Missouri-based H&R Block is a leading provider of tax preparation services. The company provides assisted income tax return preparation, do-it-yourself tax solutions and other products and services associated with income tax return preparation in the United States, Canada and Australia. H&R Block has an estimated earnings growth rate of 10.9% for the fiscal year ending June 2025 and delivered an average earnings surprise of 10.30% for the past four quarters.

H&R Block has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of A.

Delaware-based Leidos Holdings is a global science and technology leader that serves the defense, intelligence, civil and health markets. It has an estimated earnings growth rate of 19.9% for this year and delivered an average earnings surprise of 23.49% in the past four quarters.

Leidos Holdings has a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of A.

Massachusetts-based TJX Companies is a leading off-price retailer of apparel and home fashions in the United States and worldwide. The company's broad range of assortments at varying prices helps it reach out to a broad range of consumers. TJX has an estimated earnings growth rate of 8.8% for the fiscal year ending January 2025 and delivered an average earnings surprise of 6.23% in the past four quarters.

TJX Companies has a Zacks Rank #2 and a Growth Score of B.

You can get the rest of the stocks on this list by signing up now for your 2-week free trial to the Research Wizard and start using this screen in your own trading. Further, you can also create your own strategies and test them first before taking the investment plunge.

The Research Wizard is a great place to begin. It's easy to use. Everything is in plain language. And it's very intuitive. Start your Research Wizard trial today. And the next time you read an economic report, open up the Research Wizard, plug your finds in, and see what gems come out.

Click here to sign up for a free trial to the Research Wizard today.

For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks.com at: https://www.zacks.com/stock/news/2313885/5-top-ranked-dividend-stocks-for-growth-of-your-portfolio

Disclosure: Officers, directors and/or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material. An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and/or hold long and/or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material.

About Screen of the Week

Zacks.com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the "#1 site for screening stocks" by Money Magazine.  But powerful screening tools is just the start. That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use.

Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News

Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar. They're virtually unknown to the general public. Yet today's 220 Zacks Rank #1 "Strong Buys" were generated by the stock-picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016. Its average gain has been a stellar +25% per year. See these high-potential stocks free >>.

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Contact: Jim Giaquinto

Company: Zacks.com

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Zacks.com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources, which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions. Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks "Terms and Conditions of Service" disclaimer. www.zacks.com/disclaimer.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performancefor information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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