Got $10,000 to Invest in October? These Stocks Could Generate Over $634 in Annual Income.

"It takes money to make money."

You've probably heard that statement many times. And it's usually true. However, some assets allow you to make more money with less money.

For example, investing $10,000 in the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) would generate only about $100 in annual dividend income. However, spreading that same amount across three stocks -- Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET), Pfizer (NYSE: PFE), and Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) could generate over $634 in annual income.

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The math is simple

Energy Transfer, Pfizer, and Verizon are all high-yield dividend stocks. The math is simple: Investing $10,000 in the three stocks can enable you to rake in over $634 in dividends over the next 12 months.

Pfizer's forward dividend yield is currently 6.12%. Buying $3,333 (roughly one-third of your initial $10,000) worth of the drugmaker's shares should equate to around $204 in annual dividend income.

Verizon's yield of 6.15% is only slightly higher than Pfizer's. Investing $3,333 in the communication services stock would give you around $205 in dividend income over the next year.

Your passive income would be even higher with Energy Transfer. Thanks to the midstream limited partnership's juicy 6.77% yield, you could earn over $225 in annual distributions. That brings our total to above $634.

I suspect the actual income you could make with these stocks would be even higher, though. Energy Transfer expects to grow its distribution by 3% to 5% per year. Verizon has increased its dividend for 20 consecutive years. I predict that streak will continue in 2027.

What about Pfizer? The big pharma company probably won't increase its dividend. However, I don't think the dividend is in jeopardy of being cut. CEO Albert Bourla said in the 2026 second-quarter earnings conference call, "We feel extremely confident that we will -- even in the most stretched scenarios that we are running, we will be able to maintain our dividend."

A potential fly in the ointment

I'm confident that investors will receive at least $634 in dividend income by investing $10,000 in Energy Transfer, Pfizer, and Verizon. There is a potential fly in the ointment, though: It's possible that stock declines could wipe out any dividend income made over the next 12 months.

An economic downturn could negatively impact Energy Transfer and Verizon. Higher interest rates could especially hurt Verizon because of its debt load. Pfizer faces a patent cliff with several top-selling drugs losing patent exclusivity over the next couple of years.

That said, I think all three stocks should perform well over the long term. And I expect they will continue to generate significant income for investors.

Keith Speights has positions in Energy Transfer, Pfizer, and Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Pfizer. The Motley Fool recommends Verizon Communications. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.