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Buy These 5 Dividend Growth Stocks as Wall Street Rebounds
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Key Takeaways
The article spotlights five dividend growth stocks as a defensive approach in a volatile market.
Selection criteria include multi-year growth in dividends, sales, EPS and undervaluation metrics.
Each chosen stock, including NTES, shows projected revenue gains and long-term earnings growth potential.
Wall Street rebounded on Nov. 21, 2025, with all three major stock indices rising almost 1% after delivering a dismal weekly performance. The rebound was primarily backed by investor optimism surrounding a possible rate cut in December following dovish comments from John Williams, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
While this rebound offered a brief sigh of relief to the dwindling stock market, it may prove temporary, given that concerns over overvalued AI stocks still loom large across the broader market and could trigger a sell-off at any time.
Amid such an unstable environment, equity investors may want to avoid high-priced stocks and instead consider dividend-growth stocks. This is because companies with a history of raising dividends often exhibit strong financial health, providing a defensive hedge against economic uncertainty. In fact, stocks with a strong history of year-over-year dividend growth form a healthy portfolio with a greater scope of capital appreciation, as opposed to simple dividend-paying stocks or those that have high yields.
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 strong history of dividend growth suggests an increase ahead.
Although these stocks do not necessarily have the highest yields, they have outperformed for a more extended period than the broader stock market or any other dividend-paying stock.
As a result, selecting dividend-growth stocks appears to be a winning strategy when other key parameters are also taken into account.
5-Year Historical Dividend Growth Greater Than Zero: This selects stocks with a solid dividend growth history.
5-Year Historical Sales Growth Greater Than Zero: This represents stocks with a strong record of growing revenues.
5-Year Historical EPS Growth Greater Than Zero: This represents stocks with a solid earnings growth history.
Next 3-5 Year EPS Growth Rate Greater Than Zero: This represents the rate at which a company’s earnings are expected to grow. Improving earnings should help companies sustain dividend payments.
Price/Cash Flow Less Than M-Industry: A ratio lower than the industry median indicates that the stock is undervalued within its industry, meaning an investor would pay less for the company’s cash flow.
52-Week Price Change Greater Than S&P 500 (Market Weight): This ensures that the stock has appreciated more than the S&P 500 over the past year.
Top Zacks Rank: Stocks having a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and 2 (Buy) generally outperform their peers in all types of market environments.
Growth Score of B or better: Our research shows that stocks with a Growth Score of A or B, when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2, offer the best upside potential.
These few criteria alone narrowed the universe from more than 7,700 stocks to just nine.
Here are five of the nine stocks that fit the bill:
Ohio-based Cardinal Health is one of the world’s largest healthcare services and products providers. It serves nearly 90% of U.S. hospitals, delivers more than 43,000 pharmaceutical shipments daily, and manages a broad portfolio of medical, surgical, and laboratory products. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CAH’s fiscal 2026 revenues suggests a year-over-year improvement of 16.2%. The stock boasts a long-term (three-to-five years) earnings growth rate of 13.9% and has an annual dividend yield of 0.98%.
Canada-based Barrick Mining is among the largest gold mining companies in the world, with one of the largest portfolios of world-class gold and copper assets in the industry, spanning 18 countries. The consensus estimate for B’s 2025 revenues implies a year-over-year improvement of 21.5%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 38.4% and has an annual dividend yield of 1.64%.
B currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of B.
China-based NetEase is an Internet technology company engaged in the development of applications, services and other technologies for the Internet. The consensus estimate for NTES’ 2025 revenues suggests a year-over-year improvement of 10.4%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 9.9% and has an annual dividend yield of 1.70%.
NTES currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of B.
California-based Lam Research supplies wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry. The consensus estimate for LRCX’s fiscal 2026 revenues implies a year-over-year improvement of 14.1%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 20.3% and has an annual dividend yield of 0.73%.
LRCX currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of A.
Pennsylvania-based Enersys engages in manufacturing, marketing and distribution of various industrial batteries. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ENS’ fiscal 2026 revenues suggests a year-over-year improvement of 4%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 15% and has an annual dividend yield of 0.76%.
ENS currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has 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 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.
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.
Image: Bigstock
Buy These 5 Dividend Growth Stocks as Wall Street Rebounds
Key Takeaways
Wall Street rebounded on Nov. 21, 2025, with all three major stock indices rising almost 1% after delivering a dismal weekly performance. The rebound was primarily backed by investor optimism surrounding a possible rate cut in December following dovish comments from John Williams, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
While this rebound offered a brief sigh of relief to the dwindling stock market, it may prove temporary, given that concerns over overvalued AI stocks still loom large across the broader market and could trigger a sell-off at any time.
Amid such an unstable environment, equity investors may want to avoid high-priced stocks and instead consider dividend-growth stocks. This is because companies with a history of raising dividends often exhibit strong financial health, providing a defensive hedge against economic uncertainty.
In fact, stocks with a strong history of year-over-year dividend growth form a healthy portfolio with a greater scope of capital appreciation, as opposed to simple dividend-paying stocks or those that have high yields.
We have selected five such dividend growth stocks — Cardinal Health (CAH - Free Report) , Barrick Minning (B - Free Report) , NetEase (NTES - Free Report) , Lam Research (LRCX - Free Report) and Enersys (ENS - Free Report) — which could be solid choices for your portfolio.
Why Is Dividend Growth Better?
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 strong history of dividend growth suggests an increase ahead.
Although these stocks do not necessarily have the highest yields, they have outperformed for a more extended period than the broader stock market or any other dividend-paying stock.
As a result, selecting dividend-growth stocks appears to be a winning strategy when other key parameters are also taken into account.
5-Year Historical Dividend Growth Greater Than Zero: This selects stocks with a solid dividend growth history.
5-Year Historical Sales Growth Greater Than Zero: This represents stocks with a strong record of growing revenues.
5-Year Historical EPS Growth Greater Than Zero: This represents stocks with a solid earnings growth history.
Next 3-5 Year EPS Growth Rate Greater Than Zero: This represents the rate at which a company’s earnings are expected to grow. Improving earnings should help companies sustain dividend payments.
Price/Cash Flow Less Than M-Industry: A ratio lower than the industry median indicates that the stock is undervalued within its industry, meaning an investor would pay less for the company’s cash flow.
52-Week Price Change Greater Than S&P 500 (Market Weight): This ensures that the stock has appreciated more than the S&P 500 over the past year.
Top Zacks Rank: Stocks having a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and 2 (Buy) generally outperform their peers in all types of market environments.
Growth Score of B or better: Our research shows that stocks with a Growth Score of A or B, when combined with a Zacks Rank #1 or 2, offer the best upside potential.
These few criteria alone narrowed the universe from more than 7,700 stocks to just nine.
Here are five of the nine stocks that fit the bill:
Ohio-based Cardinal Health is one of the world’s largest healthcare services and products providers. It serves nearly 90% of U.S. hospitals, delivers more than 43,000 pharmaceutical shipments daily, and manages a broad portfolio of medical, surgical, and laboratory products. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CAH’s fiscal 2026 revenues suggests a year-over-year improvement of 16.2%. The stock boasts a long-term (three-to-five years) earnings growth rate of 13.9% and has an annual dividend yield of 0.98%.
CAH currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of A. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Canada-based Barrick Mining is among the largest gold mining companies in the world, with one of the largest portfolios of world-class gold and copper assets in the industry, spanning 18 countries. The consensus estimate for B’s 2025 revenues implies a year-over-year improvement of 21.5%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 38.4% and has an annual dividend yield of 1.64%.
B currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of B.
China-based NetEase is an Internet technology company engaged in the development of applications, services and other technologies for the Internet. The consensus estimate for NTES’ 2025 revenues suggests a year-over-year improvement of 10.4%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 9.9% and has an annual dividend yield of 1.70%.
NTES currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of B.
California-based Lam Research supplies wafer fabrication equipment and services to the semiconductor industry. The consensus estimate for LRCX’s fiscal 2026 revenues implies a year-over-year improvement of 14.1%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 20.3% and has an annual dividend yield of 0.73%.
LRCX currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 and has a Growth Score of A.
Pennsylvania-based Enersys engages in manufacturing, marketing and distribution of various industrial batteries. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for ENS’ fiscal 2026 revenues suggests a year-over-year improvement of 4%. The stock boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 15% and has an annual dividend yield of 0.76%.
ENS currently holds a Zacks Rank #2 and has 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 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.
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.
Disclosure: Performance information for Zacks’ portfolios and strategies are available at: https://www.zacks.com/performance.