7 ‘Strong Buy’ 2023 Dividend Aristocrats to Buy Now and Hold Forever in Your IRA

IBM operates in five major segments: Cognitive Solutions, Global Business Services, Technology Services & Cloud Platforms, Systems, and Global Financing. The analysts have cited the company’s potential in the public cloud as a reason for their positive outlook going forward.

The company posted a strong fourth quarter, with the cloud and Red Hat (the software giant the firm bought in 2019) proving to be big. Red Hat’s open hybrid cloud technologies are now paired with the unmatched scale and depth of IBM’s innovation and industry expertise and sales leadership in more than 175 countries.

IBM stock investors receive a 5.04% dividend. Stifel has set its price objective at $158, and the consensus target is $146.76. Thursday’s closing print was $130.79.

PepsiCo

This top consumer staples company will be supplying the goods for March Madness parties and summer picnics. PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE: PEP) operates as a food and beverage company worldwide. Its Frito-Lay North America segment offers Lay’s and Ruffles potato chips; Doritos, Tostitos and Santitas tortilla chips; and Cheetos cheese-flavored snacks, branded dips and Fritos corn chips.

The Quaker Foods North America segment provides Quaker oatmeal, grits, rice cakes, natural granola and oat squares, as well as Pearl Milling mixes and syrups, Quaker Chewy granola bars, Cap’n Crunch cereal, Life cereal and Rice-A-Roni side dishes.

Its North America Beverages segment offers beverage concentrates, fountain syrups and finished goods under the Pepsi, Gatorade, Mountain Dew, Diet Pepsi, Aquafina, Tropicana Pure Premium, Sierra Mist and Mug brands, as well as ready-to-drink tea and coffee, and juices.

The dividend yield here is 2.61% dividend. PepsiCo stock has a $287 price target at Barclays. That is well above the $189.50 consensus target and Thursday’s close at $176.31.

Realty Income

This is an ideal stock for growth and income investors looking for a safer, inflation-busting idea for 2023. Realty Income Corp. (NYSE: O) is a real estate investment trust dedicated to providing stockholders with dependable monthly income.

The company’s monthly distributions are supported by the cash flow from over 6,500 real estate properties owned under long-term lease agreements with commercial tenants. To date, the company has declared 608 consecutive common stock monthly dividends throughout its 54-year operating history and increased the dividend 109 times since its public listing in 1994.

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