17 Best Healthcare Dividend Growth Picks Of The Past 20 Years

The healthcare sector should be an important part of every dividend investor's portfolio. Healthcare spending as a portion of GDP in OECD countries is expected to rise steadily over the coming decades. In East Asia, healthcare spending will also rise relative to GDP, given the steep drop in fertility in that region over the last 20 years.

An aging population is a very long-lived, secular trend, and so many well-positioned healthcare businesses have steady growth prospects as far out as the eye can see. Luckily for income investors, the healthcare sector includes many businesses that are stable, dividend-minded and have good balance sheets.

Today, I like to introduce a few of the best dividend growth stocks from the healthcare sector. You might have some great names in your mind, like Johnson & Johnson or Medtronic.

For me, the medical equipment industry is a great way to invest into the future. Pharmacy is also a great but they are more cyclic and threaten by biotech. Those get also pressure from bio-similars.

There is no guarantee for a good return in the future but I feel confident to own some of the best names in the sector.

These are the best Healthcare dividend growth picks of the past 20 years. Which stocks do you like?

Span-America Medical Systems -- Yield: 3.51%

Span-America Medical Systems (NASDAQ:SPAN) employs 253 people, generates revenue of $55.86 million and has a net income of $2.59 million. The current market capitalization stands at $54.54 million.

Span-America Medical Systems’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $4.47 million. The EBITDA margin is 8.01% (the operating margin is 6.46% and the net profit margin 4.64%).

Financials: The total debt represents 0.00% of Span-America Medical Systems assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 0.00%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 8.52% was realized by Span-America Medical Systems.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $1.12. Last fiscal year, Span-America Medical Systems paid $0.57 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 16.08, the P/S ratio is 0.98 and the P/B ratio is finally 1.76. The dividend yield amounts to 3.51%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of Span-America Medical Systems (SPAN)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of Span-America Medical Systems (SPAN)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of Span-America Medical Systems (SPAN)

Johnson & Johnson -- Yield: 3.09%

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) employs 126,500 people, generates revenue of $74,331.00 million and has a net income of $16,323.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $269.02 billion.

Johnson & Johnson’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $26,305.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 35.39% (the operating margin is 27.66% and the net profit margin 21.96%).

Financials: The total debt represents 14.31% of Johnson & Johnson assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 26.90%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 22.70% was realized by Johnson & Johnson.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $5.22. Last fiscal year, Johnson & Johnson paid $2.76 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 18.83, the P/S ratio is 3.62 and the P/B ratio is finally 3.88. The dividend yield amounts to 3.09%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries -- Yield: 2.80%

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE:TEVA) employs 43,009 people, generates revenue of $20,272.00 million and has a net income of $3,047.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $56.67 billion.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $5,998.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 29.59% (the operating margin is 19.49% and the net profit margin 15.03%).

Financials: The total debt represents 22.15% of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 44.11%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 13.32% was realized by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $2.97. Last fiscal year, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries paid $1.35 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 20.51, the P/S ratio is 2.80 and the P/B ratio is finally 2.20. The dividend yield amounts to 2.80%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TEVA)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TEVA)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TEVA)

National HealthCare -- Yield: 2.46%

National HealthCare (NYSEMKT:NHC) employs 13,050 people, generates revenue of $871.68 million and has a net income of $53.37 million. The current market capitalization stands at $926.22 million.

National HealthCare’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $104.56 million. The EBITDA margin is 12.00% (the operating margin is 7.80% and the net profit margin 6.12%).

Financials: The total debt represents 4.34% of National HealthCare assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 6.35%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 8.27% was realized by National HealthCare.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $3.12. Last fiscal year, National HealthCare paid $1.34 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 20.68, the P/S ratio is 1.06 and the P/B ratio is finally 1.63. The dividend yield amounts to 2.46%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of National HealthCare (NHC)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of National HealthCare (NHC)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of National HealthCare (NHC)

Medtronic PLC -- Yield: 2.07%

Medtronic PLC (NYSE:MDT) employs 92,000 people, generates revenue of $20,261.00 million and has a net income of $2,675.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $103.80 billion.

Medtronic PLC’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $6,073.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 29.97% (the operating margin is 19.62% and the net profit margin 13.20%).

Financials: The total debt represents 33.91% of Medtronic PLC assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 67.96%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 7.36% was realized by Medtronic PLC.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $2.39. Last fiscal year, Medtronic PLC paid $1.22 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 31.07, the P/S ratio is 5.12 and the P/B ratio is finally 1.96. The dividend yield amounts to 2.07%.

Stock Charts: