Of its 500 member companies, 84% pay dividends, up from 75% a decade ago. On top of that, many of the index’s constituents are rewarding shareholders by boosting their payouts; so far this year, 169 S&P companies have done so.
There are stocks on the S&P 500 that pay nearly 10%, but that doesn't make them great investments.
The average stock on the S&P 500 index pays a dividend yield of 2.41%, but some are paying much more. Here's a chart of the 10 highest-paying dividend stocks on the S&P 500, and which ones might be the best choices to buy and hold for the long term.
Here are the highest yielding S&P 500 and the Dogs of the S&P 500...