If you’re shopping for dividend stocks, it can be tempting to invest in the companies that pay the highest yields, but a high dividend yield isn’t always a good thing.
A stock’s dividend yield is equal to its dividends per share over the last year, divided by its market price. So a high yield could mean that a stock is paying out a generous dividend, but it could also mean that its price has fallen a lot recently due to hardship. And if a dividend-paying company is really struggling — if it’s repeatedly coming up short of revenue expectations, racking up debt, or struggling to turn a profit — it may have to cut its dividend. (Learn more about investing in dividend stocks here.)
One way to avoid this problem is to screen for high-yield dividend stocks with low payout ratios (dividends per share divided by earnings per share, a measure of dividend sustainability) and strong year-to-date returns.
5 highest-yielding dividend stocks with positive YTD returns
Below is a list of the 5 highest-yielding stocks in the S&P 500 or Russell 2000 indexes that have positive year-to-date returns and payout ratios below 100%, ordered by yield.
AG Mortgage Investment Trust Inc (MITT)
International Seaways Inc (INSW)
Source: Finviz. Data is current as of market close Dec. 9, 2025, and is intended for informational purposes only.
AG Mortgage Investment Trust (MITT)
AG Mortgage Investment Trust is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that invests in residential mortgages. It has paid dividends for several years, although it has occasionally cut its payout.
Marketwise Inc. (MKTW)
Marketwise is a publisher of subscription-based investment newsletters. It has paid dividends since 2023.
International Seaways (INSW)
International Seaways operates a fleet of shipping vessels, largely in the petroleum transportation space. It has booked multiple years of quarterly dividend payments, although the dividend amount has bobbed up and down over time.
Altria Group (MO)
Altria Group is one of the world’s largest producers of tobacco products. It is a dividend aristocrat — a group of S&P 500 stocks that have increased their dividend payouts every year for at least 25 years.
Buckle, Inc. (BKE)
Buckle is a fashion retailer that operates more than 400 clothing stores across the U.S. It has paid substantial dividends for multiple years, although it hasn’t consistently grown its payout.
More on dividend investing
Neither the author nor editor owned positions in the aforementioned investments at the time of publication.
