10 High Yield Stocks For Lasting Retirement Income

Published on December 22nd, 2025 by Nathan Parsh

High-yield stocks pay out dividends that are significantly more than market average dividends. For example, the S&P 500’s current yield is only ~1.1%.

High-yield stocks can be very helpful to shore up income after retirement. A $120,000 investment in stocks with an average dividend yield of 5% creates an average of $500 a month in dividends.

We have created a spreadsheet of stocks (and closely related REITs and MLPs, etc.) with dividend yields of 5% or more…

You can download your free full list of all high dividend stocks with 5%+ yields (along with important financial metrics such as dividend yield and payout ratio) by clicking on the link below:

High dividend stocks are naturally appealing for income investors such as retirees. High yield stocks can provide higher levels of retirement income.

Of course, investors always need to do their research, to make sure the underlying stock can sustain its dividend payout.

This article will provide an overview of why dividend stocks are appealing for retirees, as well as a list of 10 high yield stocks for lasting retirement income.

Table Of Contents

The table of contents below provides for easy navigation of the article:

Why Buy High Dividend Stocks?

There are many good reasons why income investors should purchase high dividend stocks with yields above 5%.

First, dividends provide an important boost to a company’s total returns over time. Studies show that going back to 1960, 85% of the cumulative total return of the S&P 500 Index1 can be attributed to reinvested dividends and the power of compounding

Stocks that pay high dividends do not need to see their share prices expand as much as a non-dividend-paying stock in order to achieve the same total return.

Second, dividend stocks, and especially resilient dividend stocks that continue to pay dividends during tough times, can offset market declines during bear markets. While their share prices might dip temporarily, investors will at least still benefit from a steady income stream.

Third, when companies have a track record of paying out dividends, that has a disciplining effect on management.

Therefore, the following 10 high yield stocks could provide lasting retirement income. The 10 stocks below all have current yields above 5%, with Dividend Risk Scores of A, B, or C in the Sure Analysis Research Database.

This combination results in a list of 10 high yield stocks that provide strong income now, with a good chance of maintaining their dividends in a recession.

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: The Kimberly-Clark Corporation (KMB)

The Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a global consumer products company that operates in 175 countries and sells disposable consumer goods, including paper towels, diapers, and tissues. It operates through two segments that each house many popular brands: Personal Care Segment (Huggies, Pull-Ups, Kotex, Depend, Poise) and the Consumer Tissue segment (Kleenex, Scott, Cottonelle, and Viva), generating about $20 billion in annual revenue.

Kimberly-Clark trades with a market capitalization of $33 billion and has increased its dividend for 53 consecutive years, making it a member of the extremely prestigious Dividend Kings.

Kimberly-Clark posted third quarter earnings on October 30th, 2025, and results were better than expected on both the top and bottom lines. Adjusted earnings-per-share came to $1.82, which was seven cents ahead of estimates.

Revenue was flat year-over-year at $4.15 billion, but did best estimates by $50 million. Sales included negative impacts of about 2.2% from the exit of the private label diaper business in the US. Organic sales were up 2.5%, which was driven by a 2.4% gain in volume, while portfolio mix and price were flat.

On November 3rd, 2025, it was announced that Kimberly-Clark had agreed to purchase Kenvue (KVUE) in a cash and stock deal valued at $48.7 billion. This will make the new company a leading health and wellness company.

Source: Investor Presentation

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on KMB (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: The AES Corporation (AES)

The AES (Applied Energy Services) Corporation was founded in 1981 as an energy consulting company. In 1991, AES listed on the NYSE under the ticker symbol AES and then expanded globally in 1992.

The corporation now has businesses in 14 countries and a portfolio of approximately 152 generation facilities. AES produces power through various fuel types, such as gas, renewables, coal, and oil/diesel. The company has approximately 34,000 Gross MW in operation.

Source: Investor Presentation

In October 2025, it was rumored that Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) may acquire AES, but there has been no official comment made to date.

AES Corporation reported third quarter results on November 4th, 2025, for the period ending September 30th, 2025.  Adjusted EPS increased 5.6% to $0.75 for Q3 2025, which missed analyst estimates by two cents.

Year-to-date, the company completed construction of 2.9 GW of energy storage, solar and wind, and signed or awarded new long-term PPAs for 2.2 GW of renewables.

The company constructed and acquired 3 GW of renewable energy in 2024, as well as constructed a 670 MW combined cycle gas plant in Panama. In 2025, it expects to add 3.2 GW of new projects in operation, of which 2.9 GW is complete.

AES Corporation has raised its dividend for 11 consecutive years.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on AES (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: Clorox Company (CLX)

Clorox is a manufacturer and marketer of consumer and professional products, spanning a wide array of categories from charcoal to cleaning supplies to salad dressing.

The company was founded in 1913 and trades with a market capitalization of $12 billion. More than 80% of its revenue comes from products that are #1 or #2 in their categories across the globe, helping Clorox produce more than $7 billion in annual revenue. The company also boasts an outstanding dividend increase streak of 48 consecutive years.

Clorox posted first quarter earnings on November 3rd, 2025, and results were better than expected on both the top and bottom lines. Adjusted earnings-per-share came to 85 cents, which was seven cents ahead of estimates.

Revenue was down almost 19% year-over-year to $1.43 billion, but did at least beat estimates by $30 million. Sales were down primarily due to lower shipments related to the company’s ERP transition.

Organic sales plunged 17% during the quarter. The company shipped about two weeks of inventory in the prior quarter to account for this, so it should normalize in the next quarter.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on CLX (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: HA Sustainable Infrastructure Capital (HASI)

HA Sustainable Infrastructure Capital is a U.S. public company focused on climate change solutions, investing in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and sustainable infrastructure.

The company’s $15.0 billion portfolio is concentrated in Residential Solar & Storage (31%), Grid-Connected Solar & Storage (21%), Onshore Wind (16%), and Fuels, Transport & Nature (14%), with the remainder in Community Solar (8%), C&I (6%), Public Sector (3%), and Other (1%), reflecting a balanced mix across distributed, utility-scale, and decarbonization assets.

In December 2023, Hannon Armstrong’s Board approved a plan to revoke its Real Estate REIT election and become a taxable C-Corporation, effective January 1st, 2024.

On November 6th, 2025, HAS reported its Q3 2025 results for the period ended September 30th, 2025

Source: Investor Presentation

For the quarter, total revenues rose to approximately $103.1 million, representing a solid increase from roughly $82.0 million a year earlier.

Adjusted EPS for Q3 2025 came in at $0.80, up significantly from $0.52 in Q3 2024. Meanwhile, GAAP EPS of $0.61 compared with a loss of $0.17 in the prior-year quarter.

Driving the improved bottom-line performance was adjusted recurring net investment income of about $105 million, up approximately 42% year-over-year. The gain on sale of assets also increased to approximately $24.9 million, from about $7.7 million a year ago.

HASI remained active on the investment front, announcing a new $1.2 billion investment in a 2.6 gigawatt utility-scale renewable project, underlining the company’s execution in large-scale sustainable infrastructure. Managed assets grew to about $15.0 billion, up roughly 15% year-over-year, providing further evidence of scalable growth

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on HASI (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: HP Inc. (HPQ)

Hewlett-Packard’s story dates back to 1935 with two men in a one-car garage making a huge impact on electronic test equipment, computing, data storage, networking, software and services that has lasted for more than eight decades.

On November 1st, 2015, Hewlett-Packard spun off Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company (HPE) and changed its name to HP Inc. (HPQ). Today HP Inc. has centered its business activities around two main segments: its product portfolio of printers, and its range of so-called personal systems, which includes computers and mobile devices.

HP reported its fourth quarter (fiscal 2025) results on November 25th, 2025.

Source: Investor Presentation

The company reported revenue of $14.6 billion for the quarter, which beat the analyst consensus estimate by a solid $150 million, and which was up 4% from the previous year’s quarter. This was a bit better than the performance of the company during the previous quarter, when revenues had grown at a slightly slower rate.

Non-GAAP earnings-per-share totaled $0.93 during the fourth quarter, which was just ahead of the analyst consensus estimate. HP Inc. saw its operating margin decline over the last year.

The company currently forecasts adjusted earnings-per-share in a range of $0.73 to $0.81 for the first quarter of the current fiscal year, which would mean a weaker result versus the most recent quarter.

For the current year, HP is expected to generate earnings-per-share of around $3.05, with management forecasting free cash flow at around $2.8 billion.

On November 26th, 2025, HP announced that it was raising its quarterly dividend 3.7% to $0.30 per share, extending the company dividend growth streak to 15 years.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on HPQ (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: Hormel Foods Corporation (HRL)

Hormel Foods was founded in 1891 in Minnesota. Since that time, the company has grown into a $13 billion market capitalization juggernaut in the food products industry with about $12 billion in annual revenue. Hormel has kept its core competency as a processor of meat products for well over a hundred years but has also grown into other business lines through acquisitions.

The company sells its products in 80 countries worldwide, and its brands include Skippy, SPAM, Applegate, Justin’s, and more than 30 others. In addition, Hormel is a member of the Dividend Kings, having increased its dividend for 60 consecutive years.

Hormel posted fourth quarter and full-year earnings on December 4th, 2025.

Source: Investor Presentation

The company saw 32 cents in adjusted earnings-per-share for the quarter, beating estimates by two cents. Revenue was up 1.6% year-over-year and missed estimates by $30 million, coming in at $3.19 billion.

Adjusted operating margin was 7.7% of revenue, while cash flow from operations was $323 million. Volumes in the fourth quarter were flat in the retail segment, down 5% in foodservice, and down 7% in the international segment.

Hormel raised its dividend for the 60th consecutive year, this time adding 0.9% to a new payout of $1.20 per share annually. We start 2026 with an estimate of $1.47 in adjusted earnings-per-share.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on HRL (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY)

Best Buy Co. Inc. is one of the largest consumer electronics retailers in North America with operations in the U.S. and Canada. Best Buy sells consumer electronics, personal computers, software, mobile devices, and appliances, and provides services.

At the end of Q3 FY2026, Best Buy operated 886 Best Buy stores and 18 Best Buy Outlet Centers in the U.S., 20 Pacific Sales Stores, 2 Yardbird Stores, 129 Best Buy stores in Canada, and 28 Best Buy Mobile Stand-Alone Stores in Canada. Best Buy exited its Mexico operations in fiscal 2021.

Best Buy reported Q3 FY2026 results on November 25th, 2025. Enterprise revenue increased to $9,672M from $9,445M, and non-GAAP diluted earnings per share (“EPS”) increased to $1.40 from $1.26 on a year-over-year basis. GAAP diluted EPS declined to $0.66 from $1.26. Comparable enterprise revenue increased 2.7%.

Domestic revenue gained 2.1% to $8,878M from $8,697M on higher comparable sales in computing, gaming, and mobile phones.

Sales were lower for 3 out of 5 categories: Computing and Mobile Phones (+7.6%), Consumer Electronics (-2.9%), Appliances (-8.4%), Entertainment (+14.0%), and Services (-1.0%). Comparable domestic online sales increased +3.5% to $2.82B compared to the prior year. Domestic online sales comprised about 31.8% of total domestic revenue.

International segment revenue grew 6.1% to $794M from $748M year-over-year, driven by a 6.4% comparable sales increase in Canada.

Shareholders have received a dividend raise for 22 consecutive years.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on BBY (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: Eastman Chemical Company (EMN)

Founded in 1920, Eastman Chemical is a global specialty materials company that produces a broad range of products found in items people use every day. The company serves transportation, consumables, building and construction, animal nutrition, crop protection, energy, personal and home care, amongst other markets.

On November 3rd, 2025, Eastman Chemical reported its Q3 results for the period ending September 30th, 2025.

Source: Investor Presentation

For the quarter, sales declined by 11% to $2.20 billion. Revenue decreased primarily due to a 10% lower sales/volume mix and a 1% lower selling price, reflecting weaker demand in consumer discretionary end markets and continued customer inventory reductions.

Additives & Functional Products sales fell 4%, Advanced Materials declined 7%, Chemical Intermediates declined 16%, and Fibers fell 24%. Adjusted EPS decreased by 50% to $1.14.

Management emphasized strong execution on cash generation, delivering $402 million in operating cash flow (roughly in line with last year) supported by about $200 million in inventory reduction and continued cost-cutting efforts. The company remains on track to achieve more than $75 million in net cost reductions this year and an additional $100 million in 2026.

On December 4th, 2025, Eastman Chemical raised its quarterly dividend 1.2% to $0.84 per share, which gives the company a dividend growth streak of 16 years.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on EMN (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: United Bancorp (UBCP)

United Bancorp a financial holding company based in the United States, operating primarily through its wholly-owned subsidiary, United Bank. The company offers a wide range of banking services including retail and commercial banking, mortgage lending, and investment services. Some of its other solutions include checking and savings accounts, personal and business loans, as well as wealth management.

On August 21st, 2025, United Bancorp raised its dividend by 4.2% (YoY) to a quarterly rate of $0.1850, marking the 19th consecutive sequential (QoQ) increase.

On November 6th, 2025, United Bancorp reported its Q3 results for the period ending September 30th, 2025. The company announced total interest income of $10.6 million, representing a 7.0% year-over-year increase. This growth was primarily supported by higher loan yields and a 4.5% expansion in gross loans to $496.5 million, as well as new investments in municipal securities at favorable yields.

Net interest income rose 9.6% to $6.7 million, driven by a 16-basis-point expansion in the net interest margin to 3.66%.

Total interest expense rose modestly by 2.7%, with interest expense to average assets rising by 3 basis points year-over-year to 1.80%. Despite a higher provision for credit losses, which grew to $186,000 from $70,000 last year, net income improved to $1.93 million, up 6.1% year-over-year.

EPS was $0.34, marking a 9.7% increase from the prior year’s $0.31, reflecting continued balance sheet growth, disciplined expense management, and stable credit quality in a challenging macroeconomic environment.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on UBCP (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

High Yield Stock For Lasting Retirement Income: Perrigo Company (PRGO)

Perrigo’s history goes all the way back to 1887 when Luther Perrigo, the proprietor of a general store and apple-drying business, had the idea to package and distribute patented medicines and household items for country stores. Today, Perrigo is headquartered in Ireland. It operates in the healthcare sector as a manufacturer of over-the-counter consumer products.

Its Consumer Self-Care Americas segment is comprised of the U.S., Mexico and Canada consumer healthcare businesses. The Consumer Self-Care International segment includes branded consumer healthcare business primarily in Europe, but also Australia and Israel.

On February 19th, 2025, Perrigo announced that it was raising its quarterly dividend 5.1% to $0.29, extending the company’s dividend growth streak to 23 consecutive years.

On November 5th, 2025, Perrigo reported third quarter results for the period ending September 30th, 2025. For the quarter, revenue decreased 5.5% to $1.04 billion, which was $60 million less than expected. Adjusted earnings-per-share of $0.80 compared to $0.81 in the prior year, but this was $0.03 above estimates.

Source: Investor Presentation

Revenue was impacted by a 1.3% headwind related to divestitures and exited products. Organic sales fell 4.4% and were partially offset by a 1.6% benefit from favorable currency translation.

Consumer Self-Care Americas’ revenue decreased 3.8% as gains in Upper Respiratory, Skin Care, and Pain and Sleep-Aids was more than offset by weaker results in Nutrition, Digestive Health, Healthy Lifestyle, and Oral Care.

Consumer Self-Care International’s sales were down 4.5%, with most product categories seeing year-over-year declines. Just Oral Care and Skin Care were positive for the period. It was mentioned that Infant Formula and Oral Care segments were under strategic review.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on PRGO (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

Final Thoughts 

All of the above stocks have strong business models that generate high levels of cash flow. In turn, high dividend stocks can provide high dividend payouts to shareholders.

With our highest Dividend Risk Scores along with high current yields, the 10 stocks in this article could be attractive investments for income investors, such as retirees.

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