10 Stocks With The Biggest Dividend Cheque

Income investors rely on dividend stocks to provide both the cash they need for their immediate needs as well as the potential for future capital appreciation that they crave.

But just because a company is successful doesn't mean that it will choose to share its bounty with its shareholders through dividends.

It takes a commitment from company management to build a meaningful dividend policy, and many stocks have adopted dividends that return billions of dollars to their investors.

Below, you'll find the five dividend stocks that have paid the most to shareholders over the past 12 months.

These are the results...

AT&T -- Yield: 4.63%

AT&T (NYSE:T) employs 277,200 people, generates revenue of $146,801.00 million and has a net income of $13,687.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $253.26 billion.

AT&T’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $49,599.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 33.79% (the operating margin is 16.88% and the net profit margin 9.32%).

Financials: The total debt represents 31.33% of AT&T assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 102.84%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 12.57% was realized by AT&T.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $2.32. Last fiscal year, AT&T paid $1.89 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 17.64, the P/S ratio is 1.74 and the P/B ratio is finally 2.08. The dividend yield amounts to 4.63%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of AT&T (T)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of AT&T (T)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of AT&T (T)

Exxon Mobil -- Yield: 3.60%

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) employs 73,500 people, generates revenue of $259,488.00 million and has a net income of $16,551.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $361.12 billion.

Exxon Mobil’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $30,931.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 11.92% (the operating margin is 4.96% and the net profit margin 6.38%).

Financials: The total debt represents 11.49% of Exxon Mobil assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 22.65%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 9.36% was realized by Exxon Mobil.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $2.52. Last fiscal year, Exxon Mobil paid $2.88 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 34.53, the P/S ratio is 1.33 and the P/B ratio is finally 2.03. The dividend yield amounts to 3.60%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of Exxon Mobil (XOM)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of Exxon Mobil (XOM)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of Exxon Mobil (XOM)

General Electric -- Yield: 3.08%

General Electric (NYSE:GE) employs 333,000 people, generates revenue of $117,385.00 million and has a net income of $1,701.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $271.02 billion.

General Electric’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $15,699.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 13.37% (the operating margin is 7.96% and the net profit margin 1.45%).

Financials: The total debt represents 40.08% of General Electric assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 201.07%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 1.47% was realized by General Electric.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $1.06. Last fiscal year, General Electric paid $0.92 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 28.25, the P/S ratio is 2.28 and the P/B ratio is finally 2.85. The dividend yield amounts to 3.08%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of General Electric (GE)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of General Electric (GE)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of General Electric (GE)

Microsoft Corporation -- Yield: 2.69%

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) employs 114,000 people, generates revenue of $85,320.00 million and has a net income of $16,798.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $460.54 billion.

Microsoft Corporation’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $27,914.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 32.72% (the operating margin is 23.28% and the net profit margin 19.69%).

Financials: The total debt represents 27.72% of Microsoft Corporation assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 74.57%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 22.09% was realized by Microsoft Corporation.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $2.10. Last fiscal year, Microsoft Corporation paid $1.44 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 27.61, the P/S ratio is 5.29 and the P/B ratio is finally 6.28. The dividend yield amounts to 2.69%.

Stock Charts:

Long-Term Stock Price Chart of Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)

Long-Term Dividend Payment History of Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)

Long-Term Dividend Yield History of Microsoft Corporation (MSFT)

Apple -- Yield: 2.02%

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) employs 110,000 people, generates revenue of $233,715.00 million and has a net income of $53,394.00 million. The current market capitalization stands at $615.16 billion.

Apple’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounts to $81,730.00 million. The EBITDA margin is 34.97% (the operating margin is 30.48% and the net profit margin 22.85%).

Financials: The total debt represents 22.19% of Apple assets and the total debt in relation to the equity amounts to 54.01%. Due to the financial situation, a return on equity of 46.25% was realized by Apple.

Twelve trailing months earnings per share reached a value of $8.56. Last fiscal year, Apple paid $1.98 in the form of dividends to shareholders.

Market Valuation: Here are the price ratios of the company: The P/E ratio is 13.31, the P/S ratio is 2.61 and the P/B ratio is finally 5.29. The dividend yield amounts to 2.02%.

Stock Charts: