How to Use the Dividend Stock Screener
TL;DR: Use the search bar to find specific tickers or the dropdown filter to uncover stocks meeting your minimum yield requirements.
A dividend screener is essential for income investors. Rather than blindly buying stocks, our screener allows you to filter assets based on their Annual Payout and Dividend Yield (%). This helps you identify which equities align with your passive income goals, whether you prefer safe, low-yield dividend aristocrats or high-yield Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).
What is a Good Dividend Yield?
While it might be tempting to sort by the highest yield and buy the top result, an unusually high yield can be a massive red flag.
- 1% - 3% Yield: Often considered very safe. These are usually massive, mature blue-chip companies with plenty of cash to cover the dividend and room to grow it annually.
- 3% - 6% Yield: The "sweet spot" for many income investors. Often includes telecoms, utilities, and high-quality REITs.
- 7%+ Yield: Proceed with caution. While some specialized assets (like BDCs or covered call ETFs) naturally yield this much, a standard company yielding 10% is often a Dividend Trap.
Beware the Dividend Trap
A dividend yield is calculated by dividing the annual payout by the current stock price. Therefore, if a company is failing and its stock price plummets by 50%, its dividend yield automatically doubles—even though the company is in severe distress.
Investors who buy purely based on this artificially inflated yield often get trapped when the company inevitably announces a "dividend cut" to save cash. Always investigate why a yield is high before investing.
Top Strategies for Passive Income Investors
Dividend Growth Investing (DGI)
Focusing on companies with lower initial yields but a long history of increasing their payouts every single year (e.g., Dividend Aristocrats or Kings).
High Yield / Income Investing
Prioritizing immediate cash flow over long-term capital appreciation. Often involves investing heavily in REITs, MLPs, and Business Development Companies (BDCs).