While both the economic and market environments continue to be highly uncertain, it’s essential that investors are confident in the stocks they are buying. And some of the best investments on the market that you can own are Canadian dividend aristocrats.
Having confidence in your investments is key. Should the environment worsen before it gets better, you don’t want to panic and sell your stocks while they trade at ultra-cheap valuations and right before they bottom and begin to recover.
And it’s much easier not to panic and sell your investments when you know you own high-quality companies that can weather an economic downturn.
Canadian dividend aristocrat stocks are ideal because these are well-established businesses with lengthy track records of not only being profitable but consistently returning cash to investors.
So if you’re looking for high-quality investments that you can buy and hold with confidence, here are three Canadian dividend aristocrats that can help shore up your portfolio and boost your income.
One of the best Canadian dividend aristocrats with a yield of more than 7.2%
If you’re looking for Canadian dividend aristocrat stocks that you can have confidence in and can boost your income significantly, one of the best to consider is Enbridge (TSX:ENB), the massive energy infrastructure stock.
Enbridge is an ideal business because it has such a large and dominant position in an industry that’s essential to our economy.
The fact that it transports so much oil and gas all across North America, in addition to owning a massive gas utility business and consistently investing in expanding its green energy portfolio, means that Enbridge’s operations are highly defensive.
Furthermore, due to the long-life nature of its assets, Enbridge is constantly generating tonnes of cash flow. These cash streams make it an excellent stock to buy if you’re looking to boost your income.
A 7.2% dividend yield is certainly attractive, and what’s even more impressive is that the dividend is considerably safe and increased every single year. In 2023, for example, even if Enbridge only hits the low end of its distributable cash flow guidance, its payout ratio will still only be 68%.
Furthermore, Enbridge has a dividend growth streak of 27 years, showing that it has consistently been able to weather economic downturns and continue to not only return capital to investors but grow the passive income it generates.
A top Canadian utility stock
Another high-quality Canadian dividend aristocrat to buy now if you’re looking to boost your income is Fortis (TSX:FTS).
Fortis is one of the safest stocks in Canada and has the second-longest dividend growth streak at an unbelievable 49 years.
However, because it’s even safer than Enbridge, due to the fact it’s highly defensive and the utility industry is regulated, the stock offers a lower yield than Enbridge, currently at just over 3.9%.
Nevertheless, Fortis is still one of the best stocks to buy and hold long term, especially in this environment. Since it doesn’t experience much volatility at all, its future earnings are highly predictable, and it’s constantly increasing the dividends it pays to investors.
In fact, in the last five years alone, Fortis investors have seen their dividend income rise by over 32%.
A top TSX telecom stock
Lastly, another tried-and-true Canadian dividend aristocrat that you can own with confidence and will boost your passive income is BCE (TSX:BCE), the massive blue-chip telecom stock.
The telecommunications sector and services that BCE offer have become essential in recent years. And as technology continues to improve and we continue to rely on the internet more and more, stocks like BCE will continue to become even more defensive.
Furthermore, much like Fortis and Enbridge, many of the assets BCE owns are long-life assets and, therefore, require little maintenance, helping to make the stock a major cash cow.
So it should be no surprise that BCE is a Canadian dividend aristocrat stock. For 14 consecutive years now, it has increased its dividend, and today, the stock offers a yield of roughly 6.7%.
Therefore, if you’re looking for a reliable investment that can boost your income, BCE is certainly one of the best stocks you can consider.
