Many investors, particularly retirees, look to dividends for passive income. Christine Benz, Morningstar Director of Personal Finance and Retirement Planning, points out that dividends are a bird in the hand. It’s often easier to just take the cash from the dividend than it is to sell shares in order to meet your living expenses.

Investors relying on dividends in retirement should look beyond the yield. Dividend reliability and share price stability are just as important, and the potential for price appreciation should also be taken into account. Dan Lefkovitz, strategist at Morningstar Indexes, cautions that the highest yields in the market are potentially deceptive. They are often found in the riskiest sectors, industries, and companies. For investors, this can mean less reliable income and greater share price volatility. Check our list of dividend stocks with the highest yield.

This risk is evident in monthly dividend stocks, as many of them are from REITs and BDCs. These are the very stocks that offer high yields, and the dividends from them are very much subject to the earnings of the company, the cost of borrowing, and the general state of the economy. Take a look at our previous coverage as well.

High dividend strategies have always been part of the equity income portfolio. Their attraction is, of course, in the regular cash flow, particularly for those investors who are looking for a return that can survive a period of market downturn. WisdomTree has reported that dividends have historically accounted for over 40% of total global equity market returns over the past 100 years. Unlike capital gains, dividends are a regular stream of cash flow which can be reinvested. For pension funds, defined benefit plans, and anyone else who relies on portfolio income to meet ongoing outgoings, dividend payments can be a vital part of the portfolio. Btw, retirees are looking at these dividend stocks for long-term gains.

Dividend-paying companies have also historically seen smaller drawdowns than some of the non-dividend-paying companies during periods of market stress, though that hasn’t been true in every market environment. The dividend income can act as a cushion against share price declines, and a focus on established businesses can reduce exposure to the kind of speculative companies that tend to struggle in times of tighter financial conditions.

Companies with pricing power, such as utilities, financials, energy majors, and consumer staples, are typically the ones you’ll find in high dividend portfolios. Their ability to pass on cost increases to customers is a key way of protecting earnings and sustaining returns in an inflationary environment.

Also read: 10 Best Dividend Growth Stocks to Buy and Hold for 3 Years

Quarterly payments are still the norm with US dividend stocks, but monthly payments are an alternative for the investor seeking income. Monthly payments can also offer a slight compounding benefit if the dividends are reinvested. Forbes put the number at 12 times a year, as opposed to four, and the difference is real. Take a $100k position earning a 10% yield. You could be looking at approximately $90 more in the first year if you were reinvesting your dividends monthly rather than quarterly. With this backdrop, we provide the expanded list of 10 Best Dividend Stocks with Monthly Payouts. You can see the top 5 stocks below.

Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay

Our Methodology:

For this list, we reviewed companies that pay monthly dividends to shareholders. From that list, we selected businesses with robust dividend practices that have consistently maintained payouts across multiple years. Most of these selected companies operate in the Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) sector, as they must allocate 90% of their income to dividends. From that list, we selected 10 stocks with the most hedge fund investors, using Insider Monkey’s Q2 2026 database of hedge funds and their holdings.

5. LTC Properties, Inc. (NYSE:LTC)

Number of Hedge Funds: 20

Dividend Yield as of October 26: 6.08%

LTC Properties, Inc. (NYSE:LTC) is a REIT that invests in senior housing communities and skilled nursing facilities throughout the US. Its income is generated through property leases, joint ventures, and investments in senior care operators.

LTC Properties pays a monthly dividend. It has a long track record of paying dividends, having done so for over 30 years, including since the early 1990s. The most recent dividend declared for Q4 2026 is $0.19 per share per month, or $2.28 per share per year. At a share price of around $44.3, that gives a dividend yield of approximately 6%. The dividend has been $0.19 per month since 2016. The company’s operating model is changing, though, with an increase in the size of its senior housing operating portfolio. Revenue in this area comes directly from the fees and services paid by the residents rather than from rental income. This could open up further avenues for growth, though as ever the level of operating expenses and occupancy will be key to the bottom line. The most recent results provide a good measure of dividend coverage.

For Q2 2026, LTC generated core FFO of $0.68 per share versus a total quarterly dividend of $0.57. Core funds available for distribution (FAD) were $0.70 per share, again in excess of the dividend. So the dividend was covered by the core operating measures during the quarter. That said, future coverage will be dependent on the performance of the properties and investments. For income investors, it’s got the monthly payments and a very long track record of paying dividends. Whether it can continue to pay that income will depend on how well it can make the transition to operating senior housing communities and whether it can maintain the level of cash flow required to fund the distributions.

Also read: LTC Properties (LTC) Doubles Down On Senior Housing Bet

4. AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC)

Number of Hedge Funds: 28

Dividend Yield as of October 26: 16.29%

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC) is a mortgage REIT that primarily invests in agency residential mortgage-backed securities. The company uses leverage to enhance its returns and pays a monthly dividend to shareholders.

AGNC has just come off a very difficult quarter. Earnings and book value for the mortgage REIT both declined in Q3, and it posted a negative economic return on tangible common equity. The impact of the rate run-up was to drive down the share price, which in turn has pushed the dividend yield up to 16%. That’s a very high yield and suggests the dividend is in a very precarious position. Agency MBS underperformance led to a $1.45 per share decline (16.9%) in the REIT’s tangible net book value per share, which finished the quarter at $7.13. The company also posted an economic return on common equity of -12.7% for the quarter.

Meanwhile, net spread and dollar roll income per share was $0.37. That’s very close to the $0.36 per share in dividends it paid during the period ($0.12 a month). It was the third consecutive quarter of declining spread income, at $0.42 per share in Q1.

AGNC pays a $0.12 per share monthly dividend or $1.44 per share yearly. It has paid a dividend since its May 2008 IPO, which gives it over 18 years of dividend history. For AGNC, the key to dividend sustainability is its cost of capital rather than its earnings. CEO Peter Federico stated that the company’s total cost of capital in Q3 was approximately 19% whilst its existing portfolio was generating a 20% return on equity. New investments were yielding approximately 19%, which is why he believes the dividend is still in line with the business economics. Read its full analysis here.

3. Realty Income Corporation (NYSE:O)

Number of Hedge Funds: 34

Dividend Yield as of October 26: 5.71%

Realty Income Corporation (NYSE:O)’s string of uninterrupted monthly dividend declarations is by no means the only winning streak for the company and its investors. It has increased its dividend for 31 consecutive years since going public. Even better, it has increased its monthly dividend for 116 consecutive quarters. Read the dividend analysis here.

The real trick is Realty Income’s model and its sector concentration. The tenants at its over 15,000 properties are all commercial tenants, and they’re all on triple net leases. The tenants pay for the property taxes, the insurance, and the maintenance, so the cash flow is very predictable, apart from the risk of default.

The REIT is overwhelmingly focused on consumer-facing retail. That’s generally a risky proposition and makes it very sensitive to the state of the economy. Its biggest concentration is in supermarkets and convenience stores, which are historically recession-proof. That makes up over 20% of the portfolio.

Realty Income has a well-established track record of shrewd acquisitions and solid organic growth. Operating profit has outstripped the growth in its share count. Even with the long string of distribution increases, its trailing 12-month distributions are still only 75% of its FFO. The headroom is there to continue the hikes.

Realty Income is a publicly traded REIT that owns and leases commercial property to tenants on long-term “triple net” (NNN) leases.

2. EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR)

Number of Hedge Funds: 36

Dividend Yield as of October 26: 6.54%

EPR Properties (NYSE:EPR) is a REIT that owns experiential properties, such as movie theatres, amusement parks, fitness and recreation centers, and private schools. It leases these properties to the operators and distributes a portion of the rental income to its shareholders. It pays a monthly dividend and has paid a dividend since it went public in 1997.

EPR is currently paying a $0.31 per share monthly dividend or $3.72 per share annually. At the current share price, that’s a dividend yield of around 6.6%. The company increased its monthly dividend from $0.295 to $0.31 in 2026, which is the fourth year in a row that the dividend has been increased.

EPR is very much a different proposition to the typical REIT as it is focused on entertainment and leisure properties. Its rental income is dependent upon the tenants’ ability to attract customers and generate sufficient cash flow to meet their lease obligations. Tenant performance in movie theatres and other discretionary leisure spaces is therefore a key consideration for any dividend investor. See what analysts think about the stock.

The company’s monthly payout and the recent dividend increases mean it’s certainly one to consider in an income portfolio. That said, it’s important to remember that EPR suspended its common dividend during the pandemic and only reinstated it in 2021. That recovery is a perfect example of the importance of tenant stability and property-level cash flow in enabling distributions. The current yield is very attractive in terms of providing regular income; the question, of course, is whether future increases will be sustainable, and that will, in turn, be down to the strength of the tenant base and the ability to collect rental payments.

1. Agree Realty Corporation (NYSE:ADC)

Number of Hedge Funds: 37

Dividend Yield as of October 26: 4.77%

Agree Realty Corporation (NYSE:ADC) is a REIT that owns retail properties leased to tenants such as grocery stores, pharmacies, and dollar stores. It uses long-term net leases, as the tenants pay property taxes, insurance, and maintenance. The company pays monthly dividends and has been rewarding shareholders consistently since 1994, so it has over 30 years of dividend history.

The October 2026 dividend was $0.271 per share or $3.252 per year, which at the current share price gives a yield of around 4.8%. Agree has a strong track record of increasing its dividend, and this is underpinned by the continued growth of its retail portfolio and the strength of its long-term leases. Its tenant mix is a big part of the dividend story. The mix of tenants is predominantly grocery stores, pharmacies, and discount retailers, which are all suppliers of the goods people buy on a day-to-day basis. This can help to maintain traffic through the store when consumer spending is weak. The long-term leases also provide a good degree of visibility into future rental income, and the net lease structure means that the landlord doesn’t have to bear many of the property-level expenses.

Agree Realty’s monthly payouts may be attractive to investors who are looking for a more predictable stream of cash rather than the quarterly payments that you often get. The company has, on the whole, continued to increase its dividend, if modestly so in comparison to some of the other high-yield REITs. Investors also have to consider the price they pay for the shares, as a rising share price can work against yield even if the dividend is increasing. It’s a mix of monthly income, a long track record of payments, and exposure to retail properties which are leased to well-established businesses.

While we acknowledge the risk and potential of ADC as an investment, we believe certain AI infrastructure stocks offer far stronger long-term potential at a much more attractive entry point. If you are looking for an AI stock more promising than ADC that operates as a critical AI tollbooth and stands as the most important company in the world, check out our report about this must-own AI stock.

Click to continue reading and see the expanded list of the 10 Best Dividend Stocks with Monthly Payouts.

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