While the longest U.S. government shutdown ended, offering fresh cues to Wall Street for a sustained rally, the undercurrent of the global markets looks anything but steady. Wall Street has been wavering lately, thanks to concerns related to rich artificial intelligence (AI) valuations. Investors grew increasingly cautious amid mounting economic uncertainty and stretched market valuations.

Wall Street Valuation Too Ripe?

The U.S. stock market has surged more than 30% since the April lows. But it’s now facing a warning from one of the moderately famous indicators. The so-called “Buffett Indicator” has climbed to levels last seen before the 2022 bear market, per Bloomberg, as quoted on Yahoo Finance.

The metric compares the total market capitalization of U.S. stocks, now hovering around $72 trillion, to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP). Despite GDP recently growing at its fastest clip in nearly two years, the ratio shows that the stock market’s value has jumped to more than twice the size of the economy, indicating overheating, the aforementioned article noted.

Time for Dividend Investing?

In such a volatile scenario, dividend exchange-traded funds (ETFs) normally come to the rescue. The hunt for dividends in the equity market is always on, irrespective of how it is behaving. After all, who doesn’t like a steady stream of current income along with capital gains? And if investors are mired in a web of equity market uncertainty, global growth worries and geopolitical crisis, the lure for dividend investing increases further.

Investors should note that not all dividend stocks serve the same purpose. While the high-yield ones are known for offering hefty current income, stocks with dividend growth point to quality investing — a prerequisite to making money in this volatile environment.

The dividend yield on the S&P 500 is the lowest since the dotcom bubble, as quoted on CNBC.com. Against this backdrop, it makes sense to hold some higher-yielding dividend-based ETFs.

ETFs in Focus  

First Trust Dow Jones Global Select Dividend Index Fund (FGD Quick QuoteFGD - Free Report) – Up 0.2% past month (as of Nov. 21, 2025); yields 4.95% annually.

The underlying Dow Jones Global Select Dividend Index is an indicated annual dividend yield weighted index of 100 stocks selected from the developed-market portion of the Dow Jones World Index. The fund charges 56 bps in fees.

First Trust Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index Fund (FDL Quick QuoteFDL - Free Report) – Up 0.8% past month; yields 4.67% annually.

The underlying Morningstar Dividend Leaders Index consists of stocks listed on one of the three major exchanges, NYSE, NYSE Amex or Nasdaq, that have shown dividend consistency and dividend sustainability. The fund charges 43 bps in fees.

iShares International Select Dividend ETF (IDV Quick QuoteIDV - Free Report) – Up 0.7% past month; yields 4.64% annually.

The underlying Dow Jones EPAC Select Dividend Index measures the performance of a select group of equity securities issued by companies that have provided relatively high dividend yields on a consistent basis over time. The fund charges 50 bps in fees.

State Street SPDR Portfolio S&P 500 High Dividend ETF (SPYD Quick QuoteSPYD - Free Report) – Down 2.2% past month; yields 4.56% annually.

The underlying S&P 500 High Dividend Index is designed to measure the performance of the top 80 dividend-paying securities listed on the S&P 500 Index, based on dividend yield. The fund charges 7 bps in fees.

Amplify CWP Enhanced Dividend Income ETF (DIVO Quick QuoteDIVO - Free Report) – Down 1% past month; yields 4.58% annually.

The Amplify CWP Enhanced Dividend Income ETF seeks to deliver both dividend and option income to investors on a monthly basis. The fund charges 56 bps in fees.