5 Dividend Stocks for the Next 50 Years

Dividends are one of the main ways companies pay back investors, and it's one of the best ways to generate a solid return. Steady dividends display consistency in operations and are an incentive for management to make prudent decisions with excess cash.

What many investors don't realize is that dividends are often the largest portion of a stock's return, even more than stock price appreciation. In the chart below you can see that 3M's (NYSE: MMM) stock has gone up by 995% since the early 1970s, but the total return, including dividends, is more than double that because of a steady dividend that grows year after year.

MMM data by YCharts.

So, what are the best dividends on the market, dividends you can count on for generations to come? Here are my top five steady dividend stocks.

3M
If you're looking for a steady dividend, the first place to go is 3M, one of the most diverse companies in the world. 3M has paid a dividend for 386 consecutive quarters and increased its annual dividend for 55 straight years, an incredible run.  (more)

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