3 Dividend Stocks to Double Up On Right Now

Many people think of dividend-paying stocks as great for retirees, and that's certainly true. If you're retired with a stock portfolio worth a total of $500,000 and it has an overall dividend yield of, say, 4%, you'll be collecting around $20,000 in income annually -- without having to sell any shares! Better still, healthy and growing dividend payers tend to increase their payouts over time, so that income might even keep up with inflation.

But dividend-paying stocks are also great for people who are far from retirement. Let's say your $300,000 portfolio has an overall yield of 4% -- that's $12,000 in annual income that just shows up in your investment account. You may not need it to pay for living expenses, but you can reinvest those dividends -- using them to buy additional shares of stock. So while you might only be able to add, say, $10,000 to your investment accounts this year, your dividends will contribute $12,000. Dividends can be powerful portfolio boosters.

So here are three solid dividend payers to consider.

1. Pfizer

Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) is being unfairly ignored by some investors, because they're assuming that its glory days of providing much-in-demand COVID-19 vaccines are over. That's partly true, but Pfizer has more going on. For one thing, its depressed stock price (recently down about 51% since late 2021) has pushed up its dividend yield to a recent 5.7%. Even better, CEO Albert Bourla has said that "I want to reinforce our commitment to maintaining and growing our dividend over time."

Pfizer's future is promising, as it has a fat pipeline of drugs in development, including an anti-obesity drug. Its 2023 acquisition of Seagen for $43 billion is adding multiple cancer-fighting medicines to its portfolio and pipeline.

2. Medtronic

Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) is a giant in the medical device arena, with a recent market value topping $100 billion. In its fourth quarter, the company announced revenue up 5.6% year over year, and "a strategic collaboration with Nvidia to accelerate AI innovation for healthcare."

The stock's dividend recently yielded a solid 3.5% -- though it may not grow as briskly as other dividends. Still, the stock itself appears undervalued, and is therefore likely to appreciate in value over the coming years. Its forward-looking price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 14.9 is well below the five-year average of 17.9, for example.

You need to consider the whole business, though, not just the price. Medtronic boasts 46,000-plus active patent matters and more than 214 active clinical trials. Its offerings tackle more than 70 health conditions, and it specializes in products such as cardiac devices, surgical robotics, insulin pumps, surgical tools, and patient monitoring systems. Medtronic is cutting costs and CFO Karen Parkhill says, "We're encouraged by the procedure recovery we are seeing in many of our markets, our product availability is improving, we like our competitive positions across our businesses, and we have many new, innovative products coming to the market."

3. Comcast

Comcast 's (NASDAQ: CMCSA) proposition as an investment may be a little less compelling, as the company is facing some headwinds. But its valuation takes much of that into account, with the company's recent forward-looking price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 9.3 well below the five-year average of 12.5.

The company's second quarter featured estimate-topping earnings of $1.21 per share, up 7% year over year. That's promising, but the company's top line, its revenue, was down 2.7% to $29.7 billion. Comcast is struggling with a sizable debt load and tough competition in wireless and streaming.

Comcast's dividend, though, was recently yielding 3.2%, and its payout ratio (the percentage of earnings being paid out in dividends) was a reasonable 32% recently. If you're bullish on this company that spans residential connectivity, theme parks, NBCUniversal TV, Universal Pictures, and more, and you invest in it, do plan to keep an eye on it.

Take a closer look at any of these companies that interest you, and know that there are many other solid dividend-focused investments out there, too.

Before you buy stock in Pfizer, consider this: