Updated on May 16th, 2025 by Bob Ciura
The “Dogs of the Dow” investing strategy is a very simple way for investors to achieve diversification and income in their portfolios while remaining in the sphere of more conservative blue chip stocks.
The strategy consists of investing in the 10 highest-yielding stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, an index of 30 U.S. stocks.
High dividend stocks are stocks with a dividend yield well in excess of the market average dividend yield of ~1.3%.
With that in mind, we have created a free list of over 200 high dividend stocks with dividend yields above 5%.
You can download your copy of the high dividend stocks list below:
The “Dogs of the Dow” strategy produces above-average income and concentrates on stocks that typically trade at lower valuations relative to the rest of the DJIA.
Given that the DJIA represents some of the largest companies in the world, its “dogs” are typically companies with strong track records that have hit temporary problems.
This is a great and simple strategy for value investors looking to purchase good businesses that are currently out of favor.
To implement this strategy, take the amount of money you have to invest and then divide it equally among the 10 highest-yielding stocks in the DJIA.
Hold these stocks for a whole year and then at the end of 12 months, look at the 30 Dow stocks again and resort them by dividend yield from highest to lowest.
Rebalance and reallocate your capital accordingly and repeat the process. In addition to the simplicity and focus on quality, value, and income that this strategy generates, it also improves discipline by preventing excessive emotion-driven trading.
It also encourages investors to reap the tax benefits from holding positions for at least one year before selling, thereby being taxed at the long-term capital gains tax rate instead of the short-term rate.
The 2025 Dogs of the Dow
The list of the 2025 Dogs of the Dow is below, along with the current dividend yield of the top-ten yielding DJIA stocks.
Click on a company’s name to jump directly to analysis on that company.
Dog of the Dow #10: Procter & Gamble (PG)
Procter & Gamble is a consumer products giant that sells its products in over 180 countries.
Notable brands include Pampers, Luvs, Tide, Gain, Bounty, Charmin, Puffs, Gillette, Head & Shoulders, Old Spice, Dawn, Febreze, Swiffer, Crest, Oral-B, Scope, Olay and many more.
Procter & Gamble has paid a dividend for 134 years and has grown its dividend for 69 consecutive years – one of the longest active streaks of any company.
On April 8th, 2025, Procter & Gamble raised its dividend by 5%, from $1.0065 per quarter to $1.0568.
In late April, Procter & Gamble reported (4/24/25) financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2025 (its fiscal year ends June 30th).
Source: Investor Presentation
Sales dipped -2% but its organic sales edged up 1% over last year’s quarter, thanks to higher prices.
Core earnings-per-share grew 1%, from $1.52 to $1.54, beating the analysts’ consensus by $0.01. The firm sales amid sustained price hikes are a testament to the strength of the brands of Procter & Gamble.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on PG (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #9: International Business Machines (IBM)
IBM is a global information technology company that provides integrated enterprise solutions for software, hardware, and services.
Its focus is running mission-critical systems for large, multi-national customers and governments. IBM typically provides end-to-end solutions.
The company now has four business segments: Software, Consulting, Infrastructure, and Financing.
IBM reported results for Q1 2025 on April 23rd, 2025. Company-wide revenue rose 2% (CC) to $14.54 billion diluted adjusted earnings per share fell 5% to $1.60 from $1.68 on a year-over-year basis.
Diluted GAAP earnings-per-share fell 34% to $1.12 in the quarter from $1.72 in the prior year, which had a tax benefit.
Software revenue increased 9% (CC) to $6,336M in comparable quarters due to 13% growth in Hybrid Platform & Solutions, 15% rise for Automation, 7% increase for Data, and a 2% increase in Transaction Processing.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on International Business Machines (IBM) (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #8: Cisco Systems (CSCO)
Cisco Systems is the global leader in high performance computer networking systems. The company’s routers and switches allow networks around the world to connect to each other through the internet. Cisco also offers data center, cloud, and security products.
On February 12th, 2025, Cisco announced a 2.5% dividend increase in the quarterly payment to $0.41. That same day, Cisco announced results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2025 for the period ending January 25th, 2025.
For the quarter, revenue grew 9.4% to $13.99 billion, which beat estimates by $120 million. Adjusted earnings-per-share of $0.94 compared favorably to adjusted earnings-per-share of $0.87 in the prior year and was $0.03 ahead of expectations.
Excluding the company’s recent acquisition of Splunk, total revenue grew 11% for the quarter. Networking fell 3% while Security grew 117%, Observability was up 47%, and Collaboration improved 1%. By region, the Americas increased 9%, Europe/Middle East/Africa was higher by 11%, and Asia-Pacific/Japan/China was up 8%.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Cisco Systems (CSCO) (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #7: Coca-Cola (KO)
Coca-Cola is the world’s largest beverage company, as it owns or licenses more than 500 unique non–alcoholic brands. Since the company’s founding in 1886, it has spread to more than 200 countries worldwide.
Coca-Cola now has 30 billion-dollar brands in its portfolio, which each generate at least $1 billion in annual sales.
Source: Investor Presentation
Coca-Cola posted fourth quarter and full-year earnings on February 11th, 2025, and results were much better than expected on both the top and bottom lines. Adjusted earnings-per-share came to 55 cents, which was three cents ahead of estimates.
Revenue was up 6.5% year-over-year to $11.5 billion, which was a staggering $800 million ahead of estimates. Organic revenue soared 14% year-over-year for the fourth quarter. Currency-neutral operating income was up 22% year-over-year.
For the year, global unit case volume was up 1%, and was up 2% for the quarter. Excluding IRS tax litigation, free cash flow for the year would have been $10.8 billion, up 1% from 2023.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on KO (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #6: UnitedHealth Group (UNH)
UnitedHealth dates back to 1974 when Charter Med was founded by a group of health care professionals looking for ways to expand healthcare options for consumers. It produces about $445 billion in revenue annually.
The company has two major reporting segments: UnitedHealth and Optum. The former provides global healthcare benefits to individuals, employers, and Medicare/Medicaid beneficiaries.
The Optum segment is a services business that seeks to lower healthcare costs and optimize outcomes for its customers.
UnitedHealth posted first-quarter earnings on April 17th, 2025, and results missed estimates on both the top and bottom lines. In addition, a sizable guidance cut was made, taking investors by surprise and causing a huge drop in the share price on the news.
Adjusted earnings-per-share came to $7.20, which was nine cents worse than expected. Revenue was up almost 10% year-over-year to $110 billion, but missed estimates by more than $2 billion.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on UNH (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #5: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)
Johnson & Johnson is a diversified health care company and a leader in the area of innovative medicines and medical devices Johnson & Johnson was founded in 1886.
On April 15th, 2025, Johnson & Johnson announced that it was increasing its quarterly dividend 4.8% to $1.30, extending the company’s dividend growth streak to 63 consecutive years.
Source: Investor Presentation
That same day, Johnson & Johnson reported first quarter results for the period ending March 31st, 2025. For the quarter, revenue grew 2.3% to $21.9 billion, which beat estimates by $330 million.
Adjusted earnings-per-share of $2.77 compared to $2.71 in the prior year and was $0.19 more than expected. Results included adjustments related to the costs of acquisitions.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on JNJ (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #4: Amgen Inc. (AMGN)
Amgen is the largest independent biotech company in the world. Amgen discovers, develops, manufactures, and sells medicines that treat serious illnesses.
The company focuses on six therapeutic areas: cardiovascular disease, oncology, bone health, neuroscience, nephrology, and inflammation.
On May 1st, 2025, Amgen reported first quarter earnings results. Revenue grew 8.7% to $8.1 billion, which was $60 million ahead of estimates.
Adjusted earnings-per-share of $4.90 compared favorably to $3.96 in the prior year and was $0.64 more than expected.
Source: Investor Presentation
For the quarter, growth was primarily due to a 14% improvement in volumes, offset by a 6% decline in pricing. Sales for Enbrel, which treats rheumatoid arthritis, were down 10% to $510 million as net selling prices were down 47% year-over-year.
Prolia, which treats osteoporosis, grew 10% to a $1.1 billion, driven once again by volume growth.
The company did reiterate that biosimilar competition will likely impact sales in 2025. Repatha, which is used to control cholesterol, improved 27% to $656 million.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Amgen Inc. (AMGN) (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #3: Merck & Company (MRK)
Merck & Company is one of the largest healthcare companies in the world. Merck manufactures prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, and animal health products.
Merck employs 68,000 people around the world and generates annual revenues of more than $63 billion.
Source: Investor Presentation
On April 24th, 2025, Merck reported first quarter results. For the quarter, revenue declined 1.9% to $15.5 billion, but topped expectations by $170 million. Adjusted earnings-per-share was $2.22 compared to $2.07 the prior year and beat estimates by $0.08.
Keytruda, which treats cancers such as melanoma that cannot be removed by surgery and non-small cell lung cancer, continues to be the key driver of growth for the company as sales for the drug were higher by 4% to $7.2 billion during the period. The product generated $29.5 billion in 2024, up from $25 billion in 2023 and $20.9 billion in 2022.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on MRK (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #2: Chevron Corporation (CVX)
Chevron is one of the largest oil majors in the world. The company sees the bulk of its earnings from its upstream segment and has a higher crude oil and natural gas production ratio than most of its peers.
Chevron has increased its dividend for 38 consecutive years, placing it on the Dividend Aristocrats list.
Source: Investor Presentation
In early May, Chevron reported (5/2/25) results for the first quarter of 2025. Production remained essentially flat from the prior year’s first quarter, as asset sales offset record Permian output after the acquisition of PDC Energy.
In addition, the price of oil decreased and refining margins plunged to normal levels after two years of elevated levels.
As a result, earnings-per-share fell -26%, from $2.93 to $2.18. Moreover, the price of oil has plunged lately, as OPEC has begun to restore its output.
Chevron grew its output by 7% in 2024 thanks to sustained growth in the Permian Basin and acquisitions. The company has more than doubled the value of its assets in the Permian in the last six years thanks to new discoveries and technological advances.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Chevron Corporation (CVX) (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Dog of the Dow #1: Verizon Communications (VZ)
Verizon Communications was created by a merger between Bell Atlantic Corp and GTE Corp in June 2000. Verizon is one of the largest wireless carriers in the country.
Wireless contributes three-quarters of all revenues, and broadband and cable services account for about a quarter of sales. The company’s network covers ~300 million people and 98% of the U.S.
On April 22nd, 2025, Verizon reported first quarter results for the period ending March 31st, 2025. For the quarter, revenue grew 1.5% to $33.5 billion, which topped estimates by $220 million.
Source: Investor Presentation
Adjusted earnings-per-share of $1.19 compared favorably to $1.15 in the prior year and was $0.04 ahead of expectations.
For the quarter, Verizon had postpaid phone net losses of 289K, which compares to net losses of 114K in the same period of last year. Wireless retail postpaid phone churn rate remains low at 0.90%.
Wireless revenue grew 2.7% to an industry-leading $20.8 billion while the Consumer segment increased 2.6% to $17.2 billion.
Broadband totaled 339K net new customers during the period, ending what had been 10th consecutive quarters of at least 375K net adds.
Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on VZ (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):
Final Thoughts
Given the descriptions above, the Dogs of the Dow are clearly a very diverse group of blue-chip stocks that each enjoy significant competitive advantages and lengthy histories of paying rising dividends.
As a result, this investing strategy is a great, low-risk way for unsophisticated investors to approach dividend growth investing.
While it may not outperform the broader market every year, it is virtually guaranteed to provide investors with a combination of attractive current yield with steadily rising income over time.
If you are interested in finding high-quality dividend growth stocks and/or other high-yield securities and income securities, the following Sure Dividend resources will be useful:
High-Yield Individual Security Research
Other Sure Dividend Resources
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