2 Top Dividend Stocks to Buy Now and Hold For a Decade

New investing trends pop up on Wall Street all the time. Over the past seven years, we have witnessed excitement surrounding cannabis stocks, the metaverse, artificial intelligence, and more. However, dividend investing is always in style. Not only do dividend-paying companies tend to have robust businesses, but the regular payouts that income-oriented stocks provide can also help boost long-term returns through dividend reinvestment. That's why it's always worth considering buying shares of top dividend companies. And two that look attractive right now are Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) and AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV). Here's why.

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1. Pfizer

Pfizer's financial results have been inconsistent at best over the past few years. As a result, the company's shares have lagged the broader stock market. However, the drugmaker has several redeeming qualities, especially as it works diligently to turn things around. Pfizer has rejuvenated its pipeline through acquisition and licensing deals, and now owns promising products that should help boost sales and profits once they earn approval. One of them is PF-4044, an investigational cancer medicine that could challenge Keytruda, the best-selling cancer drug on the market.

Pfizer is launching seven phase 3 studies for PF-4044 soon and plans to initiate an additional 10 (at least) by the end of 2026. Pfizer clearly has big aspirations for PF-4044. Management believes the medicine could receive approvals for treating various types of cancer.

Pfizer also acquired an exciting weight loss candidate, called MET-097i. The therapy posted strong phase 2 results. Besides these two, Pfizer has a robust pipeline, particularly in oncology, but also across other areas. Over the next few years, the pharmaceutical giant should succeed in rejuvenating its pipeline and moving beyond the inconsistent COVID-19 market and upcoming patent cliffs, such as that of Eliquis, an anticoagulant that will lose patent exclusivity by 2029.

Although the stock has declined over the past couple of years, the foundation is in place for Pfizer to bounce back. And amid all the troubles it has encountered, the company has not suspended or decreased its dividend. Pfizer offers a substantial forward yield of approximately 6.7% and has increased its dividend payouts by 51.3% over the past decade. Pfizer's prospects and dividend profile look attractive for income seekers.

2. AbbVie

There is plenty to like about AbbVie's business. The healthcare giant has a diverse portfolio of products across several therapeutic areas. AbbVie has recorded steady revenue growth and successfully navigated one of the industry's largest patent cliffs, that of Humira, the world's former best-selling drug, which lost U.S. patent exclusivity in 2023. In the third quarter, AbbVie's revenue jumped by 9.1% year over year to $15.8 billion.

Several products contribute to AbbVie's strong top-line growth. The two most important are Skyrizi and Rinvoq, two drugs approved for use across several immunology indications. AbbVie's key growth drivers are expected to maintain strong northbound momentum well into the next decade. In fact, AbbVie settled with generic drugmakers to prevent cheaper copies of Rinvoq from entering the U.S. market until 2037.

Here's another critical thing to know about AbbVie: The company will suffer no major loss of patent exclusivity through the rest of the decade. This should grant enough time for the company to develop a strategy to overcome the next significant patent cliff, whenever it happens. AbbVie is already working on that project and boasts a deep pipeline, which it has also sought to improve through licensing deals. AbbVie is entering the weight management market through a collaboration with Denmark-based drugmaker Gubra A/S for an investigational anti-obesity compound called GUB014295, which is still in early-stage studies.

AbbVie has plenty of pipeline programs beyond that. The drugmaker has time to discover its next gem before current growth drivers start facing generic or biosimilar competition, which means investors can expect solid financial results in the medium term. Lastly, AbbVie has a fantastic dividend track record as part of the exclusive group of Dividend Kings, or companies that have raised their payouts for at least 50 consecutive years (AbbVie's streak stands at 54). This is one dividend investors can take straight to the bank.

Prosper Junior Bakiny has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends AbbVie and Pfizer. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.