Published on 23 May 2024 on Insider Monkey via Yahoo Finance

Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT): The Best Dividend Stock of 2024?

We recently published an article about the 10 best dividend stocks of 2024.

Though Applied Materials, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) ranks fifth on our list of the 10 Best Dividend Stocks of 2024, we have analyzed the stock in detail.

We are nearly halfway through the year, and the stock market is showing consistent signs of improvement. The S&P 500 has surged by 12.2% this year so far, with its 12-month return coming in at nearly 27%, as of the close of May 21. However, dividend stocks are still not keeping up with the broader market, with the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index returning just 3.85% since the start of 2024. Last year also didn’t go well for these equities as tech stocks rose to fame. That said, the tech stocks that drove the market rally, have decided to enhance their shareholder return by initiating dividend policies this year. This could have an impact on the performance of dividend stocks and the overall market. David Harrell, an editor of the Morningstar Dividend Investor newsletter, made the following comment in this regard: