3 Dividend Aristocrats For Long-Term Income

The Dividend Aristocrats are a group of stocks in the S&P 500 Index with over 25 consecutive years of dividend increases. These high-quality businesses have managed recessions and various crises, while continuing to reward shareholders with dividend raises each year.

As a result, the Dividend Aristocrats are among the best dividend stocks to buy and hold for the long run.

The following 3 Dividend Aristocrats have dividend yields well above the S&P 500 average, and durable competitive advantages to continue raising their dividends in the years to come.

PepsiCo Inc. (PEP)

PepsiCo is a global food and beverage company that generates almost $94 billion in annual sales. The company’s products include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Frito-Lay chips, Gatorade, Tropicana orange juice and Quaker foods. The company has more than 20 $1 billion brands in its portfolio.

On February 3rd, 2026, PepsiCo announced that it would increase its annualized dividend by 4.0% to $5.92 starting with the payment that was made in June 2026, extending the company’s dividend growth streak to 54 consecutive years.

That same day, PepsiCo released fourth quarter and full year results for the period ending December 31st, 2025. For the quarter, revenue grew 5.6% to $29.3 billion, which beat estimates by $370 million. Adjusted earnings-per-share of $2.26 compared favorably to $1.96 the prior year, which was $0.02 more than expected.

For the year, revenue grew 2.3% to $93.9 billion while adjusted earnings-per-share of $8.14 was down from $8.16 in 2024. Organic sales grew 2.1% for the quarter and 1.7% for the year.

For the quarter, food volume fell 2% while beverages grew 1%. PepsiCo Beverages North America’s organic revenue improved 2% for the period even as volume decreased by 4%.

PepsiCo provided guidance for 2026 as well, with the company expecting organic sales in a range of 2% to 4%. The company expects earnings-per-share growth in a range of 4% to 6%.

PEP has increased its dividend for 54 consecutive years.

Automatic Data Processing (ADP)

Automatic Data Processing is one of the largest business services outsourcing companies in the world. The company provides payroll services, human resources technology, and other business operations to more than 700,000 corporate customers.

ADP posted second quarter earnings on January 28th, 2026, and results were better than expected on both the top and bottom lines. Adjusted earnings-per-share came to $2.62, which was a nickel ahead of estimates, and was up from $2.49 in Q1, and from $2.35 in the year-ago period. 

Revenue was up 7.2% year-over-year to $5.36 billion, beating estimates by $20 million. Expenses came to $4.08 billion, which was higher from $3.98 billion in Q1 and $3.88 billion a year earlier. Adjusted EBIT margin was 26.0% of revenue, up from 25.5% in Q1 and from 25.2% a year ago. The company guided for revenue growth of 6% for this year, adjusted EBIT margin of ~60 basis points, and adjusted diluted earnings-per-share growth of 9% to 10%.

Automatic Data Processing has compounded its adjusted earnings-per-share at a rate of more than 13% per year over the last decade. Looking forward, we believe the company is capable of delivering 9% annualized growth in earnings-per-share over full economic cycles. 

Much of this growth is likely to be driven by the company’s Professional Employer Organization (PEO) Services segment, which continues to deliver very impressive revenue growth. Importantly, this revenue growth has been accompanied by meaningful margin expansion, which means that the segment’s growth has had an outsized impact on the firm’s bottom line.

ADP has increased its dividend for 51 years in a row.

Becton, Dickinson & Co. (BDX)

Becton, Dickinson & Co., or BD, is a global leader in the medical supply industry. The company was founded in 1897 and has 75,000 employees across 190 countries. The company generates almost $22 billion in annual revenue, with approximately 43% of revenues coming from outside of the U.S. 

BD is composed of multiple segments. They include Medical Essentials, Connected Care, BioPharma Systems, Interventional, and Life Sciences. 

BD announced results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2026, which ended December 31st, 2026. For the quarter, revenue improved 1.5% to $5.25 billion, which topped estimates by $100 million. Adjusted earnings-per share of $2.91 compared unfavorably to $3.43 in the prior year, but this was $0.10 more than expected. 

For the quarter, Medical Essentials was down 0.6% on a currency neutral basis to $1.6 billion as gains in U.S. Vascular Access Management and the BD Vacutainer portfolio were more than offset by order timing in China. Connected Care grew 4.7% to $1.13 billion due to growth in Pharmacy Automation and strength in Advanced Patient Monitoring. BioPharma was up 1% to $429 million due to double-digit growth in Biologics. Interventional climbed 5.1% to $1.33 billion, mostly due to higher demand for the PureWick franchise and Advanced Tissue Regeneration. 

BD provided an updated outlook for fiscal year 2026 as well. Revenue is still projected to grow at a low single-digit rate. Adjusted earnings-per-share are now expected to be in a range of $12.35 to $12.65 for the fiscal year. 

BD has increased earnings-per-share 5.9% per year over the past decade, and has grown earnings in 7 out of the last 10 years. BD has increased its dividend for 54 consecutive years.