Our December High-Yield 6% Dividend Stocks Have Big Total Return Potential

Investors love dividend stocks, especially those with high yields, because they provide a substantial income stream and offer significant total return potential. Total return includes interest, capital gains, dividends, and distributions realized over time. In other words, the total return on an investment or a portfolio consists of income and stock appreciation. Let's examine the concept of total return. If you purchase a stock at $20 that pays a 3% dividend ($0.60 per share) and the price rises by 10% to $22 in a year, your total return is ($22 + $0.60 − $20) = 13%. This combines price appreciation and dividends received.

24/7 Wall St. Key Points

• With the trading year coming to an end, many investors will be looking to reset for 2026.

• Should the S&P 500 close at about the same level it is trading at now on 12/31, we will print the third straight year of double-digit gains.

• While AI and hyperscalers will remain a focus in 2026, total return may be on many investors’ minds after a big three-year run.

• Some investors get rich while others struggle because they never learned there are two completely different strategies to building wealth. Don’t make the same mistake, learn about both here.

There are almost 10,000 publicly traded stocks in the United States; not even the most intelligent investors with the best tools can find them all immediately. Many investors and traders typically maintain a small list of key stocks they follow when seeking capital gains or high-yield dividends. We decided to screen our 24/7 Wall St. high-yield database for solid companies yielding at least 6% with strong dividend coverage. Five of the stocks that hit our screens for December are potential total return champions that could offer investors a smooth ride in 2026, as we could see some major selling at some point next year. All are rated Buy at the top Wall Street firms we cover.

Why do we cover total return dividend stocks?

Since 1926, dividends have accounted for approximately 32% of the S&P 500's total return, while capital appreciation has accounted for 68%. Therefore, sustainable dividend income and potential capital appreciation are essential to total return expectations. A study by Hartford Funds, in collaboration with Ned Davis Research, found that dividend stocks delivered an annualized return of 9.18% over the past 50 years (1973 to 2023). Over the same timeline, this was more than double the annualized return for non-payers (3.95%).

Altria

Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) is one of the world's largest producers and marketers of cigarettes and other smokable and oral tobacco-related products in the United States. Its stock offers value investors a 6.26% dividend yield, a compelling entry point, and a generous 6.92% dividend yield.

The company primarily sells cigarettes under the Marlboro brand, as well as:

• Cigars and pipe tobacco, principally under the Black & Mild and Middleton brands

• Moist smokeless tobacco and snus products under the Copenhagen, Skoal, Red Seal, and Husky brands

• on! Oral nicotine pouches

• e-vapor products under the NJOY ACE brand

It sells its tobacco products primarily to wholesalers, including distributors and large retail organizations, such as chain stores.

Altria used to own over 10% of Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A. (NYSE: BUD), the world's largest brewer. Last year, the company sold 35 million of its 197 million shares through a global secondary offering. That represents 18% of its holdings but still leaves 8% of the outstanding shares in its back pocket. Altria also announced a $2.4 billion stock repurchase plan partially funded by the sale.

Stifel has a Buy rating with a $72 target price.

Enterprise Products Partners

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE: EPD) is an American midstream natural gas and crude oil pipeline company headquartered in Houston, Texas. This company is one of the most extensive publicly traded energy partnerships, paying a very reliable 6.81% dividend. The company's debt-to-EBITDA ratio ranges from 3.1x to 3.4x, which is moderate for a midstream energy company, and its interest coverage ratio is 5x.

Enterprise Products Partners generates strong free cash flow, with an operating cash flow of approximately $8.8 billion, resulting in around $4.2 billion in free cash flow annually, after deducting capital expenditures. Another significant benefit for shareholders is that most of the corporate debt is fixed-rate, thereby limiting the risk of rising interest rates.

Enterprise Products Partners provides various midstream energy services, including:

• Gathering

• Processing

• Transporting and storing natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGL), and fractionation

• Import and export terminalling

• Offshore production platform services

The company has four reportable business segments:

• Natural Gas Pipelines and Services

• NGL Pipelines and Services

• Petrochemical Services

• Crude Oil Pipelines and Services

One reason many analysts like the stock might be its distribution coverage ratio. The company’s coverage ratio is well above 1x, making it relatively less risky among the MLPs.

J.P. Morgan has an Overweight rating with a $38 target price.

Healthpeak Properties

This leading company invests in real estate in the healthcare industry, including senior housing, life sciences, and medical offices. Healthpeak Properties Inc. (NYSE: DOC) is a fully integrated real estate investment trust (REIT) that pays a stellar 6.98% dividend.

The company acquires, develops, owns, leases, and manages healthcare real estate across the United States. It owns, operates, and develops real estate focused on healthcare discovery and delivery.

Healthpeak Properties segments include:

• Lab

• Outpatient medical

• Continuing care retirement community (CCRC)

The Outpatient medical segment owns, operates, and develops outpatient medical buildings, hospitals, and lab buildings.

The lab segment properties contain laboratory and office space, and are leased primarily to:

• Biotechnology

• Medical device and pharmaceutical companies

• Scientific research institutions

• Government agencies

• Organizations involved in the life science industry

Its CCRC segment is a retirement community that offers independent living, assisted living, memory care, and skilled nursing units, providing a continuum of care within an integrated campus.

Pfizer

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs. This top pharmaceutical stock was a massive winner in the COVID-19 vaccine sweepstakes, but has been crushed over the last two years as many people have not received boosters. Pfizer discovers, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells biopharmaceutical products worldwide. It pays a dependable 6.78% dividend, which has increased annually for the past 15 years.

The company offers medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, including:

• Cardiovascular, metabolic, and women's health under the Premarin family and Eliquis brands

• Biologics, small molecules, immunotherapies, and biosimilars under the Ibrance, Xtandi, Sutent, Inlyta, Retacrit, Lorbrena, and Braftovi brands

• Sterile injectable and anti-infective medicines and oral COVID-19 treatment under the Sulperazon, Medrol, Zavicefta, Zithromax, Vfend, Panzyga, and Paxlovid brands

Pfizer also provides medicines and vaccines in various therapeutic areas, such as:

• Pneumococcal disease, meningococcal disease, and tick-borne encephalitis

• COVID-19 under the Comirnaty/BNT162b2, Nimenrix, FSME/IMMUN-TicoVac, Trumenba, and the Prevnar family brands

• Biosimilars for chronic immune and inflammatory diseases under the Xeljanz, Enbrel, Inflectra, Eucrisa/Staquis, and Cibinqo brands

• Amyloidosis, hemophilia, and endocrine diseases under the Vyndaqel/Vyndamax, BeneFIX, and Genotropin brands

Pfizer anticipates full-year 2025 revenues in the range of $61.0 to $64.0 billion. This includes the expectation that revenues from COVID-19 products in 2025 will be broadly consistent with 2024 levels, after excluding approximately $1.2 billion of non-recurring Paxlovid revenue in 2024.

Jefferies has a Buy rating and a $33 target price.

Verizon

This American multinational telecommunications company continues to offer tremendous value. Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) trades at 9.13 times its estimated 2026 earnings, pays a 6.60% dividend, and is up just 2% in 2025. The company provides a range of communications, technology, information, and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses, and government entities worldwide.

It operates in two segments:

• Verizon Consumer Group

• Verizon Business Group

The Consumer segment provides wireless services across the United States through Verizon and TracFone networks, as well as through wholesale and other arrangements. It also provides fixed wireless access (FWA) broadband through its wireless networks and related equipment and devices, such as:

• Smartphones

• Tablets

• Smartwatches and other wireless-enabled connected devices

The segment also offers wireline services in the Mid-Atlantic and northeastern United States through its fiber-optic network, Verizon Fios product portfolio, and copper-based network.

The Business segment provides wireless and wireline communications services and products, including:

• FWA broadband

• Data

• Video and conferencing

• Corporate networking

• Security and managed network

• Local and long-distance voice

Network access services to deliver various IoT services and products to businesses, government customers, and wireless and wireline carriers in the United States and internationally.

 Goldman Sachs has a Buy rating and a price target of $52.

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Why Some Investors Get Rich While Others Struggle

The fact is there are two totally different investment paths you can take right now. And while either can make you some money, choosing the right one at the right time can mean the difference between just getting by and getting truly rich. Most people don’t even realize the difference, and that mistake can be devastating for your portfolio. Whether you’re investing $1,000, or $1,000,000 today, learn the difference and put yourself on the right path. See the report.