Top analysts suggest these 3 dividend stocks for stable income

Corporate earnings along with geopolitical concerns have swayed investor sentiment in recent trading sessions. But investors seeking consistent income against a volatile backdrop can always add attractive dividend-paying stocks to their portfolios.

For discerning investors, top Wall Street analysts can help select the right stocks, backed by strong cash flows to support consistent dividend payments.

Here are three dividend-paying stocks that are highlighted by Wall Street’s top pros, as tracked by TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.

Viper Energy

Viper Energy (VNOM), a subsidiary of Diamondback Energy, is focused on owning and acquiring mineral and royalty interests in oil-weighted basins, primarily the Permian in West Texas. Considering the base and variable dividends paid over the past year, VNOM stock offers a dividend yield of 5.53%.

Ahead of Viper’s Q4 2025 results in February, Roth Capital analyst Leo Mariani reiterated a buy rating on VNOM stock with a price target of $48. The analyst is bullish on VNOM based on its high “organic growth rate vs. peers, a solid and growing dividend, strong free cash flow even at lower oil prices and a multi-year line of sight on its operations not had by its peers.”

Mariani expects Viper Energy to deliver strong Q4 results with oil production of 66,552 barrels of oil per day (Bopd), about 1% above the Street estimate. He expects total production of 129,424 barrels of oil equivalent per day (Boepd) for Q4 2025, or almost 2% above the consensus estimate. Mariani also anticipates that Viper will report solid oil price realizations for Q4 2025, but weaker gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) realizations.

The 5-star analyst expects Viper to announce a cash distribution to shareholders of $0.57 for Q4 2025, reflecting a sequential decline of 2%. But he expects $95 million worth of share buybacks in Q4 2025, up from $90 million in the third quarter. Mariani expects share buybacks to play a larger role in Viper’s capital return plans, especially compared with a subdued oil backdrop.

Mariani also describes Viper as more insulated than its peers if 2026 drilling and completion activity is cut due to weak oil prices. That’s because Diamondback operates about 60% of its production and can scale back cut activity outside VNOM’s mineral acreage, helping protect volumes. Moreover, VNOM’s non-operated activity is led by top-tier operators like Exxon Mobil, Occidental, EOG Resources, ConocoPhillips, and Ovintiv, which lowers the risk of sharply lower activity, as they control about two-thirds of Viper’s non-Diamondback acreage.

Mariani ranks No. 124 among more than 12,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been successful 60% of the time, delivering an average return of 27.1%. See Viper Energy Statistics on TipRanks.

SLB

The week’s second dividend pick is oilfield services provider SLB (SLB). The company recently reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter of 2025. Moreover, SLB announced a 3.5% hike in its quarterly cash dividend to $0.295 per share. SLB pays a dividend yield of 2.41%.

Following the Q4 print, JPMorgan analyst Arun Jayaram reiterated a buy rating on SLB and raised his price target to $54 from $43. The analyst noted that SLB’s 2026 guidance was in line with consensus expectations, adding that encouraging insights from the earnings call reflect management’s optimism about improvement in three international areas — Saudi Arabia, Mexico and deepwater — which hurt the company’s 2025 performance.

SLB expects its international segment to gain from business in Latin America, the Middle East and Asia in 2026, partially offset by a modest fall in revenue in Europe and Africa, the 5-star analyst said. SLB is also expected to benefit from the revitalization of Venezuela’s oil industry, as it’s the only Western oil field services company currently operating in the country as part of Chevron’s operating license.

Meanwhile, SLB’s Gulf of Mexico presence and growth in the Data Center Solutions segment are expected to drive revenue in North America. “The growth dynamics of Digital and Data Center Solutions remain key longer-term catalysts for SLB,” said Jayaram.

Overall, Jayaram expects SLB to deliver solid cash flow growth, driven by the company’s international footprint, project integration capabilities and robust digital adoption. The analyst expects SLB to generate free cash flow of about $4.2 billion in 2026 and return nearly $4.3 billion in cash to shareholders through $1.7 billion of base dividends and $2.6 billion of buybacks.

Jayaram ranks No. 673 among more than 12,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 58% of the time, delivering an average return of 11%. See SLB Stock Buybacks on TipRanks.

EOG Resources

Another dividend-paying energy company this week is EOG Resources (EOG). The crude oil and natural gas exploration and production company offers a quarterly dividend of $1.02 per share. At an annualized dividend of $4.08 per share, EOG’s dividend yield stands at 3.68%.

Ahead of Q4 earnings, Siebert Williams Shank analyst Gabriele Sorbara reaffirmed a buy rating on EOG stock with a price target of $150. The analyst expects EOG to deliver upbeat Q4 results on both operational and financial fronts. Sorbara expects the company to report oil production of 545.7 Mbbls/d (thousand barrels per day), in line with the Street’s estimate and within the company’s guidance of 542.5 to 547.5 Mbbls/d. Additionally, Sorbara expects total production of 1,369 Mboe/d (million barrels of oil equivalent per day), almost in line with the consensus estimate of 1,371 Mboe/d.

The 5-star analyst thinks that investors will focus on EOG’s 2026 guidance and early updates on its international projects in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, as well as management’s commentary on capital efficiencies in the Utica Shale and Delaware Basin.

“EOG stands out with the potential for peer-leading shareholder returns (at least 70% of FCF returned to shareholders annually) supported by its strong free cash flow generation and best-in-class balance sheet,” said Sorbara.

Specifically, Sorbara expects EOG to make opportunistic buybacks, with $4 billion still available under an existing authorization as of the end of the third quarter of 2025. The analyst estimates $457.4 million in Q4 2025 share buybacks. Including the base dividend, Sorbara estimates $1.0 billion of total capital returns, reflecting 98.4% of EOG’s free cash flow.

Sorbara ranks No. 511 among more than 12,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been successful 53% of the time, delivering an average return of 15.9%. See EOG Resources Technical Analysis on TipRanks.