A Trio of High Yield Stock Picks for the Dividend Income Investor

Their dividend yields top the S&P 500 index

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The following companies may be of interest to dividend investors, as their stocks are offering higher dividend yields than the S&P 500 index. The S&P 500's dividend yields 1.75% as of Tuesday, Sept. 15.

Furthermore, Wall Street has issued positive ratings for these stocks, which indicates that their share prices are expected to continue to perform well over the months ahead.

NiSource Inc

The first company that beats the S&P 500 index is NiSource Inc (NI, Financial), a Merrillville, Indiana-based regulated distributor of natural gas and electricity in the United States.

Based on Tuesday's closing price of $22.11 per share, NiSource Inc offers a trailing 12-month dividend yield of 3.76% and a forward dividend yield of 3.8%. The company is currently paying a quarterly dividend of 21 cents per common share. NiSource Inc has paid dividends for about 25 years.

Close to a three-year high, the current dividend yield is high compared to its recent historical values.

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GuruFocus assigned the company a low score of 3 out of 10 for its financial strength rating and a positive score of 6 out of 10 for its profitability.

The stock has an overweight recommendation rating with an average target price of $26 per share on Wall Street.

The past 52 weeks of trading have pushed the share price down nearly 25%, determining a market capitalization of $8.47 billion and a 52-week price range of $19.56 to $30.67.

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The stock is neither oversold nor overbought, as signaled by a 14-day relative strength index of 42.

Unilever PLC

The second company that tops the benchmark is Unilever PLC (UL, Financial), a Dutch household and personal products company.

Based on Tuesday's closing price of $62.47 per American Depository Receipt (ADR), Unilever PLC offers a trailing 12-month dividend yield of 2.9% and a forward dividend yield of 3%. Currently, the company pays a quarterly dividend of 46.9 cents per common share. Unilever PLC has been paying dividends for about 20 years.

The company's current dividend yield is quite high compared to its historical values, as the below chart exhibits. Thus, the purchasing of this stock seems profitable.

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GuruFocus assigned the company a moderate financial strength rating of 5 out of 10 and a remarkably high profitability rating of 8 out of 10.

The stock has an overweight recommendation rating with an average target price of $63.23 per ADR on Wall Street.

The price per ADR has gained 1.7% over the past year, determining a market capitalization of $163.75 billion and a 52-week range of $44.06 to $63.14.

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With a 14-day RSI of 62, the stock does not seem to be either overbought or oversold.

Rayonier Inc

The third company that outperforms the S&P 500 index is Rayonier Inc (RYN, Financial), a Yulee, Florida-based specialty real estate investment trust company focusing on timberland claims in high productive regions in the U.S. and New Zealand.

Based on Tuesday's closing price of $27.44 per share, Rayonier Inc offers a yield of 3.95% for both the trailing 12-month dividend and forward dividend. The company is currently distributing a quarterly dividend of 27 cents per common share. Rayonier Inc has paid dividends for more than 25 years.

Investing in Rayonier Inc still appears profitable as of Sept. 15, as the current dividend yield is high compared to its historical values.

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GuruFocus assigned the company a moderate financial strength rating of 4 out of 10 and a very good profitability rating of 7 out of 10.

The stock has a hold recommendation rating with an average target price of $31.17 per share on Wall Street.

The share price has declined almost 2% over the past year, determining a market capitalization of $3.75 billion and a 52-week range of $15.96 to $33.10.

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The 14-day RSI of 43 tells that the stock is neither overbought nor oversold.

Disclosure: I have no positions in any securities mentioned.

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