Dividend-paying
stocks
that
combine
healthy
balance
sheets
with
hefty
yields
can
provide
investors
with
steady
incomes,
cushion
against
market
downturns,
and
grow
investments
at
a
healthy
clip.

In
the
first
quarter
of
2024,
the
top-performing
dividend-payers
included
Italian
heavy
machinery
company
Iveco
Group
(IVG),
Italian
insurance
firm
Unipol
Gruppo
(UNI),
and
Italian
engineering
and
construction
company
Maire
Tecnimont
(MAIRE).

To
find
the
quarter’s
10
best-performing
income-focused
stocks,
we
screened
the

Morningstar
Eurozone

index

which
measures
the
performance
of
the
eurozone’s
broad
regional
markets,
targeting
the
top
97%
of
stocks
by
market
capitalisation

for
companies
with
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
at
least
1.5%,
excluding
real
estate
investment
trusts.


The
Best-Performing
Eurozone
Dividend
Stocks
of
Q1
2024

1.
Iveco
Group
(IVG)
2.
Unipol
Gruppo
(UNI)
3.
Maire
Tecnimont
(MAIRE)
4.
Rubis
(RUI)
5.
BPER
Banca
(BPE)
6.
UniCredit
(UCG)
7.
Sarantis
Group
(SAR)
8.
Daimler
Truck
(DTG)
9.
Laboratorios
Farmaceuticos
Rovi
(ROVI)
10.
Banco
Bilbao
Vizcaya
Argentaria
(BBVA)


How
Have
Dividend
Stocks
Performed?

The

Morningstar
Eurozone
Dividend
Yield
Focus

index,
which
tracks
the
performance
of
high-quality,
dividend-paying
stocks
listed
in
Europe,
rose
2.5%
over
the
past
month
and
7.1%
over
the
past
year.

The
overall
eurozone
stock
market,
as
measured
by
the

Morningstar
Eurozone

index,
has
gained
9.9%
on
the
quarter
and
17.2%
on
the
year.


Yields
and
Metrics
for
Q1’s
Best-Performing
Dividend
Stocks


Iveco
Group

Italian
heavy
machinery
company
Iveco
rose
69.4%
in
the
first
quarter
and
gained
58.2%
over
the
past
12
months.
Trading
at
€13.80
per
share,
its
stock
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
1.59%.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
currently
trading
at
a
13%
discount
to
its
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€15.81
per
share,
leaving
it
with
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
4
stars.


Unipol
Gruppo

Italian
insurer
Unipol
rose
50.4%
in
the
first
quarter
and
gained
71.6%
over
the
past
12
months.
At
€7.77
per
share,
its
stock
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
4.76%
and
an
annual
dividend
of
€0.37
per
share.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
trading
near
its
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€9.27
per
share.
It
has
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


Maire
Tecnimont

Italian
engineering
and
construction
company
Maire
Tecnimont
gained
48%
in
the
first
quarter
and
rose
86.7%
over
the
past
12
months.
The
stock’s
€7.26
price
gives
it
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
2.71%.
Maire
Tecnimont
pays
investors
an
annual
dividend
of
€0.12
per
share.
With
a
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€5.96
per
share
and
no
economic
moat,
the
stock
is
moderately
overvalued,
trading
at
a
22%
premium.
It
has
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
stars.


Rubis

French
oil
and
gas
company
Rubis
rose
45.5%
in
the
first
quarter
and
gained
40.5%
over
the
past
12
months.
Trading
at
€32.74
per
share,
Rubis
stock
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
5.86%
and
an
annual
dividend
of
€1.92
per
share.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
trading
near
its
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€36.33
per
share.
It
has
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


BPER
Banca

Italian
bank
BPER
Banca
gained
44.7%
in
the
first
quarter
and
rose
98%
over
the
past
12
months.
Trading
at
€4.38
per
share,
its
forward
dividend
yield
is
6.85%.
BPER
Banca
pays
investors
€0.12
per
share
annually.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
trading
near
its
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€5.13
per
share.
It
has
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


UniCredit

Italian
bank
UniCredit
gained
43.2%
in
the
first
quarter
and
rose
107.7%
over
the
past
12
months.
At
€35.17
per
share,
UniCredit
stock
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
5.13%
and
an
annual
dividend
of
€0.99
per
share.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
trading
near
its
fair
value
estimate
of
€36.33
per
share.
It
has
a
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


Sarantis
Group

Greek
household
and
personal
products
company
Sarantis
rose
40.1%
in
the
first
quarter
and
gained
74.1%
over
the
past
12
months.
Trading
at
€11.74
per
share,
Sarantis
stock
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
1.91%
and
an
annual
dividend
of
€0.15
per
share.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
trading
near
its
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€11.44
per
share.
It
has
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


Daimler
Truck

German
heavy
machinery
company
Daimler
Truck
rose
37.2%
in
the
first
quarter
and
gained
54.9%
over
the
past
12
months.
Trading
at
€46.79
per
share,
Daimler
Truck
stock
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
4.06%
and
pays
investors
an
annual
dividend
of
€1.30
per
share.
The
stock,
which
has
no
economic
moat,
is
currently
trading
near
its
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€45.37
per
share,
leaving
it
with
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


Laboratorios
Farmaceuticos
Rovi

Spanish
biotechnology
firm
Laboratorios
Farmaceuticos
Rovi
gained
34.4%
in
the
first
quarter
and
rose
113.6%
over
the
past
12
months.
The
stock’s
€80.90
price
gives
it
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
1.6%.
Laboratorios
Farmaceuticos
Rovi
pays
investors
an
annual
dividend
of
€1.29
per
share.
With
a
quantitative
fair
value
estimate
of
€66.04
per
share
and
a
narrow
economic
moat,
the
stock
is
significantly
overvalued,
trading
at
a
22%
premium.
It
has
a
quantitative
Morningstar
Rating
of
1
star.


Banco
Bilbao
Vizcaya
Argentaria
(BBVA)

Spanish
bank
BBVA
rose
34.2%
in
the
first
quarter
and
gained
75.2%
over
the
past
12
months.
At
€11.04
per
share,
BBVA
has
a
forward
dividend
yield
of
4.98%
and
an
annual
dividend
of
€0.47
per
share.
The
stock,
which
has
a
narrow
economic
moat,
is
trading
near
its
fair
value
estimate
of
€11.51
per
share.
It
has
a
Morningstar
Rating
of
3
stars.


What
Is
the
Morningstar
Eurozone
Index?

The
Morningstar
Eurozone
index
measures
the
performance
of
the
eurozone’s
broad
regional
markets,
targeting
the
top
97%
of
stocks
by
market
capitalisation.
The
index
does
not
incorporate
environmental,
social,
or
governance
criteria.


What
Is
the
Morningstar
Eurozone
Dividend
Yield
Focus
Index?

The
Morningstar
Eurozone
Dividend
Yield
Focus
index
captures
the
performance
of
a
portfolio
of
high-quality,
dividend-paying
securities.

It’s
a
subset
of
the
Morningstar
Eurozone
index
(which
represents
97%
of
the
equity
market
capitalisation)
that
includes
only
stocks
that
pay
dividends.
The
stocks
are
screened
for
economic
moat
and
financial
strength
compared
to
others
in
their
sector.
Real
estate
investment
trusts
are
excluded.

From
there,
the
25
highest-yielding
stocks
are
included
in
the
index,
weighted
by
the
dollar
value
of
the
dividends.
See
the
full
rulebook

here
.


The
Best
Dividend
Stock
Leaders:
More
Ideas
to
Consider

Investors
who
would
like
to
uncover
more
top-performing
or
cheap
dividend
stocks
to
research
further
can
do
the
following: 


Review
the
full
list
of
Dividend
stocks
included
in
the

Morningstar
Eurozone
Dividend
Yield
Focus

index.
Those
dividend
stocks
with
Morningstar
Ratings
of
4
or
5
stars
are
undervalued,
according
to
our
metrics.

• Read
our
monthly
analysis
of
the
latest
dividend
moves

among
the
top
FTSE
100
dividend
payers
.

• Use
our

Morningstar
Screener

tool
to
find
the
best
dividend
stocks
according
to
your
specific
criteria.
You
can
search
for
stocks
based
on
their
dividend
yields,
valuation
measures
such
as
price/earnings,
and
more.

• Use

Morningstar
Portfolio
Manager

to
build
a
watchlist
of
the
best
dividend
stocks
and
create
a
view
that
allows
you
to
easily
follow
the
valuations,
ratings,
and
dividend
yields
of
the
stocks
in
your
list.

When
it
comes
to
buying
stocks,
it’s
more
than
just
dividends.
Read

here

how
valuations
and
competitive
advantages

known
as
economic
moats

matter
when
it
comes
to
a
stock’s
potential
for
outperformance.


Companies
that
are
not
formally
covered
by
a
Morningstar
analyst
have
quantitative
ratings.
These
companies
are
statistically
matched
to
analyst-rated
companies,
allowing
our
models
to
calculate
a
quantitative
moat,
fair
value,
and
uncertainty
rating.


This
article
was
compiled
by
Bella
Albrecht,
edited
by
Lauren
Solberg,
and
reviewed
by
Sunniva
Kolostyak.


As
part
of
our
mission
to
put
more
information
into
the
hands
of
investors,
this
article
was
compiled
from
Morningstar’s
data
and
independent
research
using
automation
technology.
The
original
article
was
written
by
Morningstar
reporters
and
editors.
This
updated
version
was
reviewed
by
an
editor.

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