Should You Buy the 3 Highest-Paying Dividend Stocks in the Dow Jones?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES: ^DJI) fell sharply after the U.S. released a new tariff program. Does that open up some opportunities for investors who like high-yield stocks? A quick look at the three highest-paying dividend stocks on the index -- Merck (NYSE: MRK), Chevron (NYSE: CVX), and Verizon (NYSE: VZ) -- is a good place to start if you want to find out.Merck's 4% dividend yield is near the highest levels of the past decade, though it's been much higher in the past. That said, the company's 15-year dividend growth streak isn't the whole story on the dividend. It has trended generally higher for far longer than that, with some periods in which it remained the same and didn't grow. All in, it has proven to be a pretty reliable dividend stock.Merck has a broad pharmaceutical portfolio, with drugs in cardiometabolic health, oncology, vaccines, infectious diseases, and even animal health. Although the company is leaning on its oncology business today for growth, it has a deep pipeline of drugs in the works.Continue readingWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei MotleyFool Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei MotleyFool