We’re officially entering the holiday shopping season, which makes it a great time to shore up your portfolio’s income stream. There are many strategies for maximizing investment returns, and one of the more popular methods is dividend investing.
Dividend stocks are often viewed as defensive picks, but they can also deliver meaningful gains in bull markets. The most obvious is the dividend itself – a steady cash payment that contributes directly to total return. And because dividends are paid out in cash, they offer flexibility: They can cover current expenses or be reinvested to buy more shares, setting the stage for higher income over time.
The best dividend stocks have two attributes: high yield and a reliable payment history. Together, these attributes increase the value of your dividends and ensure you can plan for them. Combined with the stock’s strong fundamentals, it all adds up to a solid portfolio.
Against this backdrop, we used the TipRanks database to find a few dividend-paying companies with a yield of 7% or higher that Wall Street analysts believe are worth buying. Let’s take a closer look at these dividend champions.
DoplexLP(Doplex)
The first is MPLX, a master limited partnership formed by Marathon Petroleum that owns and operates a network of midstream and logistics assets in the energy industry. In addition, MPLX also provides fuel delivery services. MPLX is a large operator with a market capitalization of US$55 billion and annual revenue of nearly US$12 billion.
The midstream company’s network of assets spans a large area in the lower 48 states and includes natural gas gathering and processing facilities, light and heavy oil products terminals, marine and terminal facilities, inland waterway transportation, above-ground and underground storage facilities and the pipelines required to connect all of these facilities together.
In a major announcement earlier this month, MPLX unveiled a letter of intent with Florida-based digital asset and cryptocurrency miner MARA Holdings. The letter outlines a plan under which MPLX will support the supply of natural gas to a planned integrated power generation facility and state-of-the-art data center campus in West Texas. MPLX will provide natural gas directly from its processing plant in the fertile Delaware Basin, ensuring a stable source of fuel for MARA’s operations and a source of electricity for MPLX. The planned collaboration is still under negotiation.
Meanwhile, back in late October, the company announced a quarterly dividend and increased its payout by 12.5%. The new dividend is $1.0765 per common share, payable on November 14. The annualized dividend per common share is $4.30, and the forward yield is 7.85%.
MPLX announced in its third-quarter 2025 earnings report that its revenue was $3.62 billion, a year-over-year increase of 22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter beat forecasts by $460.3 million. Looking at the bottom line, MPLX’s earnings per share came in at $1.52, beating consensus estimates by $0.44 and more than enough to fully cover the dividend. The company reported distributable cash flow of $1.5 billion for the quarter, which allowed $1.1 billion of capital to be returned to shareholders.
RBC’s Elvira Scotto, a top 4% Wall Street analyst and energy industry expert, likes the stock, especially its potential to continue growing its dividend. The five-star analyst wrote of the midstream leader: “We believe MPLX has favorable growth prospects on select project timelines in 2026 and beyond, which can significantly drive its single-digit annual EBITDA growth target and support incremental distribution growth. We continue to view MPLX as one of the most compelling revenue plays among large MLPs, currently yielding an attractive ~8%, and with plans for further growth.”
Scotto quantifies her stance on MPLX with an Outperform (Buy) rating and a $60 price target, which suggests a nearly 9% share price appreciation in one year. Add in the dividend yield, and the stock’s one-year total return could be over 16%. (To view Scotto’s record, click here)
Overall, MPLX has 8 recent reviews on record, with a mix of 5 Buys and 3 Holds giving it a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating. The stock is priced at $55.85, with an average price target of $58.88, implying a 7% upside in the year ahead. (look MPLX Stock Forecast)
For the second stock on our list, we’ll stick with the energy sector — but look at it from a different perspective. Dorian LPG is a major player on the ocean trade routes and a leading owner-operator of VLGC vessels, or very large natural gas carriers. These are the largest ocean-going carriers of liquefied petroleum gas, an increasingly important fuel in the global economy.
Dorian has been in the ocean-going LPG transport business since 2013 and today owns and operates a fleet of 25 vessels, of which 21 are owned and 4 are chartered. Most of the company’s fleet was built and launched in the 2010s – although the oldest ships date back to 2007 – but five of the vessels are less than five years old. All vessels can carry 80,000 to 90,000 cubic meters of natural gas. Most of Dorian’s ships are Bahamian-flagged, but several are Panamanian, Liberian or Madeira-flagged. Multiple flags are common in the global shipping business, as is having offices in different locations – Dorian has offices in Connecticut, Copenhagen and Athens.
As of the company’s last reported quarter, the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2026, Dorian had cash and other liquid assets totaling $268.3 million. The company’s time charter equivalent rate per available day – a crucial metric for shipping companies – reached $53,725 across the fleet. Dorian’s fiscal second quarter revenue was $124.1 million, adjusted net income was $55.8 million, and non-GAAP earnings per share were $1.31. We should note that while revenue grew 50% year over year, the company’s top and bottom lines missed expectations. Revenue fell $7.1 million, and non-GAAP earnings per share fell 19 cents.
In addition to earnings, Dorian announced an occasional cash dividend of 65 cents per common share, payable on December 2. The payment represents a 5-cent increase from the last dividend declared. The new dividend has an annualized interest rate of $2.60 per common share and a forward yield of 10.5%.
The stock caught the attention of another five-star analyst, Jefferies’ Omar Nokta. Nokta first noted that Dorian missed expectations in its second-quarter financial report, but also noted that the results themselves were strong. Nokta, who is also among Wall Street’s top 4% equity experts, is bullish on LPG stock, writing in the company’s article: “Dorian’s fiscal 2Q26 earnings missed expectations as VLGC realization rates were lower than modeled. However, results were quite strong, the highest in five quarters, as VLGC spot rates were strong and continued into the quarter. Given its higher spot exposure, Dorian is well-positioned to capture stronger VLGCs.” interest rates. We are optimistic about the outlook for the industry, supported by moderate newbuilding deliveries and the potential for continued high-speed growth in U.S. exports in the coming quarters. “
Jefferies experts give the stock a buy rating and a price target of $35, indicating room for 42% upside in the next 12 months. If you include the dividend yield, the return could jump to over 52%. (To view Nokta’s track record, click here)
There are only two recent reviews here, split evenly between Buy and Hold, for a Moderate Buy consensus rating. The stock is selling for $24.64, and its average price target is $32.5, which implies a 32% appreciation over the next year. (look Liquefied Petroleum Gas Stock Forecast)
To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. This content is for reference only. It is important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
