2 High-Yield Healthcare Stocks to Buy Before They Raise Payouts

It's safe to say the healthcare sector isn't renowned as a repository of dividend-paying companies.

Yet some not only pay such monies steadily and reliably, but theirs are lofty enough to be considered high-yield dividends. And, per their established habit, they'll surely be declaring dividend raises before long. Here's a brief look at a pair of such stocks: AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) and Medtronic (NYSE: MDT).

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AbbVie (current dividend yield: 3.3%)

Pharmaceutical stock investors tend to focus on the dreaded patent cliff. This is the point at which a drug loses its patent exclusivity and therefore becomes vulnerable to competition from any rival willing to reproduce the molecule. Earlier this decade, the web of patents protecting AbbVie's versatile blockbuster drug, Humira, began to expire, sparking concerns that it would make the company an also-ran.

This didn't occur; in fact, AbbVie these days is thriving more than it did during the height of the drug's exclusivity and popularity. The combination of internal development and acquisitions has resulted in an impressive product lineup that includes 12(!) blockbusters, i.e., drugs that earn more than $1 billion in annual sales (including the still-strong Humira).

With so many greenbacks flooding into its coffers, AbbVie has enough financial strength not only to fund its dividend but also to keep it growing. In fact, as the company was once part of habitual dividend raiser Abbott Laboratories, it qualifies as a Dividend King, the tiny clutch of U.S. stocks that have enacted dividend raises at least once per year for a minimum of 50 years straight.

AbbVie's quarterly payout is $1.73 per share these days, and it was most recently raised in April.

2. Medtronic (current dividend yield: 3.7%)

Medtronic is the largest pure-play medical device company on the scene, with annual revenue topping $33.5 billion. A sizable operator with considerable experience, the company offers a wide variety of goods crucial to the medical profession. These cover millions of patients and a great many practitioners.

While Medtronic is a behemoth and therefore doesn't post high revenue growth, it's consistently profitable, with net margins that habitually land above 10%. As you can probably conclude, free cash flow has been far in the black; since 2020, on an annual basis, it's ranged from almost $4.6 billion to slightly under $6 billion.

It should be no surprise, then, to learn that Medtronic's latest dividend raise was its 48th in a row, putting it within easy distance of Dividend King status. Meanwhile, given that the world's population is aging (and thus increasingly in need of medical care), Medtronic is well positioned for years of future growth and profitability.

The company's distribution, last increased in May 2025, is $0.71 per share.

Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends AbbVie, Abbott Laboratories, and Medtronic. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.