Stocks could be in for a bumpy second quarter if current market action continues. Investors may want to turn to some steady dividend payers to ride out the volatility and generate income. Equities have had a rocky start to the quarter as investors fret over the timing of interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that policymakers need further evidence that inflation is easing toward the central bank's 2% goal before dialing back rates.
Pro screened for so-called dividend aristocrats, companies that have raised their payments in each of the past 25 years. We further trimmed down the list using the following criteria: Stocks must be a member of the ProShares S & P 500 Dividend Aristocrats ETF . They offer a dividend yield of at least 2%. At least 51% of analysts have a buy rating. Average analyst price targets call for at least 10% upside going forward. Just four elite stocks made the cut.