- LPG -0.73% MPLX -1.73%
We’re officially in the holiday shopping season, and that makes this a good time to shore up the investment portfolio’s revenue stream. There are plenty of strategies to maximize investment income, and one of the more popular approaches is dividend investing.
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Dividend stocks are usually viewed as a defensive choice, but they can deliver meaningful benefits in a bull market as well. The most obvious is the dividend itself – a steady cash payment that contributes directly to total return. And because dividends are paid in cash, they offer flexibility: they can cover current expenses or be reinvested to buy additional shares, setting the stage for higher income over time.
The best dividend stocks will feature two attributes: a high yield and a reliable payment history. Together, these attributes improve the dividend’s value and ensure that you can plan on it. Added to strong fundamentals on the stock, it all adds up to a solid portfolio addition.
Against this backdrop, we’ve used the TipRanks database to look up some dividend payers that offer payment yields of 7% or better – and that the Street’s analysts suggest are worth buying. Let’s give these dividend champs a closer look.
MPLX LP (MPLX)
First up, MPLX, a master limited partnership company that was formed by Marathon Petroleum to own and operate a network of energy industry midstream and logistics assets. In addition, MPLX also provides fuel distribution services. MPLX is a large-cap operator, with a $55 billion market cap valuation and nearly $12 billion in annual revenues.
This midstream company’s asset network covers large swaths of the lower 48 states and includes natural gas gathering and processing facilities, light and heavy oil product terminals, maritime transport and terminal facilities, inland river transport, above-ground and below-ground storage facilities, and the pipelines necessary to connect all of this together.
In an important announcement made earlier this month, MPLX made public its letter of intent with the Florida-based digital asset and crypto miner MARA Holdings. The letter outlines an initiative under which MPLX will support the supply of natural gas to planned integrated power generation facilities and state-of-the-art data center campuses in West Texas. MPLX will provide the gas directly from its processing plants in the rich Delaware Basin, ensuring a steady source of fuel to power MARA’s operations – and a source of electricity for MPLX. The planned collaboration is still under negotiation.
Story continuesMeanwhile, back at the end of October, the company declared its quarterly dividend and implemented a 12.5% increase in the payment. The new dividend, of $1.0765 per common share, was paid out on November 14. The annualized dividend payment of $4.30 per common share gives a forward yield of 7.85%.
In its 3Q25 earnings report, MPLX reported a top line of $3.62 billion, for a 22% year-over-year increase. The company’s revenue in the quarter beat the forecast by $460.3 million. At its bottom line, MPLX’s EPS came to $1.52, ahead of the consensus estimate by $0.44 and more than enough to fully cover the dividend payment. The company reported a distributable cash flow in the quarter of $1.5 billion, which allowed for $1.1 billion in capital to be returned to shareholders.
RBC’s Elvira Scotto, an analyst ranked among the top 4% on Wall Street and an expert on the energy industry, likes this stock – especially its potential to continue delivering dividend increases. The 5-star analyst writes of this midstream leader, “We believe MPLX has good visibility for growth into 2026 and beyond given project timelines that can largely drive its mid-single digit annual EBITDA growth target and support incremental distribution increases. We continue to view MPLX as one of the most compelling income plays among large-cap MLPs with an attractive current yield of ~8% and plans to grow further.”
Scotto quantifies her stance on MPLX with an Outperform (Buy) rating and a $60 price target that suggests a one-year share appreciation of nearly 9%. Add in the dividend yield, and this stock’s total one-year return could exceed 16%. (To watch Scotto’s track record, click here)
Overall, there are 8 recent reviews on record for MPLX, and the split of 5 Buys to 3 Holds gives a Moderate Buy consensus rating. The stock is priced at $55.85, and its average target price of $58.88 implies it will gain 7% in the coming year. (See MPLX stock forecast)
Dorian (LPG)
For the second stock on our list, we’ll stick with the energy industry – but look at a different facet of it. Dorian LPG is a major player on the oceanic trade routes, and a leading owner-operator of VLGC vessels, or very large gas carriers. These are the largest ocean-going carrier vessels for liquefied petroleum gas, an increasingly important fuel in the global economy.
Dorian has been in the oceanic LPG shipping business since 2013 and today owns and operates a fleet of 25 vessels, of which 21 are owned and 4 are chartered in. Most of the company’s fleet was built and launched in the 2010s – although the oldest vessel dates to 2007 – but five of the ships are less than five years old. All of the vessels can carry between 80,000 and 90,000 cubic meters of gas. Most of Dorian’s vessels are flagged in the Bahamas, although several fly the flags of Panama, Liberia, or Madeira. The multiplicity of flags is common in the global shipping business, as is keeping offices in various places – Dorian has office locations in Connecticut, Copenhagen, and Athens.
At the end of the company’s last reported quarter, fiscal 2Q26, Dorian had cash and other liquid assets totaling $268.3 million. The company’s time charter equivalent rate per available day – a vital metric for a shipping company – came to $53,725 across the fleet. Dorian generated $124.1 million in revenues for the fiscal second quarter and realized an adjusted net income of $55.8 million, for a non-GAAP EPS of $1.31. We should note that, while revenue was up 50% year-over-year, the company missed expectations on both the top and bottom lines. Revenue missed by $7.1 million, and the non-GAAP EPS missed by 19 cents per share.
Along with its earnings, Dorian announced an irregular cash dividend payment of 65 cents per common share, to be paid out on December 2. The payment marks a 5-cent increase from the last declared dividend. The new dividend gives an annualized rate of $2.60 per common share and a forward yield of 10.5%.
This stock has caught the eye of another 5-star analyst, Omar Nokta of Jefferies. Nokta starts by noting that Dorian missed estimates in its fiscal Q2 report but also notes that the results were strong in and of themselves. Nokta, who also ranks among the top 4% of Street stock experts, is bullish on LPG shares and writes of the company, “Dorian’s fiscal 2Q26 earnings missed expectations due to a lower realized VLGC rate than modeled. The results however were quite strong and the highest in five quarters, driven by strong underlying VLGC spot rates which have continued into the current quarter… Dorian is well positioned to capture stronger VLGC rates given its high spot exposure. We have a favorable outlook for the sector supported by moderate newbuilding deliveries and likely continued high US export volume growth in the coming quarters.”
The Jefferies expert gives this stock a Buy rating with a $35 price target that indicates room for a 42% upside potential in the next 12 months. That return may jump to more than 52% when the dividend yield is added in. (To watch Nokta’s track record, click here)
There are only two recent reviews on file here, split evenly between Buy and Hold for a Moderate Buy consensus rating. The stock is selling for $24.64, and its $32.5 average price target implies that it will appreciate by 32% over the next year. (See LPG 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 analyst. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.
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