5 Dividend Stocks Delivering Rock Solid Fourth-Quarter Income

5 Dividend Stocks Delivering Rock Solid Fourth-Quarter Income

Chris Lange

Wed, September 16, 2026 at 6:11 PM GMT+3 7 min read

Quick Read

• York Water holds the longest dividend streak in US public markets at 27 consecutive years, while WTW's $1.775B operating cash flow dwarfs its $358M dividend obligation.

• Amdocs and Ituran both run near-recession-proof revenue models, with DOX posting near-100% managed services renewal rates and ITRN carrying zero debt alongside $103.7M in net cash.

• All five stocks fund dividends from contracted or recurring revenue streams such as regulated rates, fee income, or subscriptions, insulating payouts from economic cycles.

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Income investors heading into the fourth quarter want payouts that don't wobble with the business cycle. The five names below share one thing: dividends funded by recurring, contracted, or fee-based revenue streams that keep flowing whether or not the macro cooperates. Each has raised its payout recently, and each trades on Nasdaq. As a grounding data point, Willis Towers Watson (NASDAQ:WTW) alone generated $360 million of first-half free cash flow, roughly double the prior-year period, giving the broker ample room to keep funding both dividends and buybacks.

York Water

York Water (NASDAQ:YORW) is the small Pennsylvania regulated water utility whose payout streak is the longest in US public markets. The dividend yield sits at 2.73%, with a quarterly rate of $0.228 and the next payment due October 15, 2026. Trailing EPS of $1.60 against an annualized payout implied by that quarterly rate leaves solid earnings coverage, and management flagged its 27th consecutive year of dividend increases in the Q1 summary.

The bull case is straightforward regulated rate-base growth. A rate increase that took effect March 1, 2026 drove Q3 revenue up 22.5% year over year to $23.52 million, with EPS of $0.49 beating the $0.40 estimate. Small tuck-ins including CMV Sewage and Pine Run extend the footprint. The caveat: annual capex has run above operating cash flow every year from 2020 through 2025, so growth is debt- and equity-financed, and the absolute yield is modest for the sector.

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Willis Towers Watson

WTW is a global insurance broker and HR advisor whose revenue is heavily fee-based and highly recurring. The current yield is 0.6%, with the quarterly dividend raised to $0.96 in 2026 from $0.92 in 2025, extending a multi-year hike cadence that shows quarterly amounts stepping up from $0.48 in 2016 to today. Trailing EPS of $16.16 dwarfs the annualized payout, and 2025 operating cash flow of $1.775 billion against $358 million in dividends leaves the payout well covered.

The bull case is capital return on top of margin expansion. Q2 adjusted EPS rose 17% to $3.35, adjusted operating margin expanded 100 basis points to 19.5%, and management reiterated at least $1 billion of buybacks for the year. The Propel program targets an enterprise adjusted operating margin near 30% by 2028. Risk: the Willis Re JV creates a roughly $0.30 EPS headwind and the Newfront transaction is about $0.10 dilutive near term.

Mondelez International

Mondelez International (NASDAQ:MDLZ) owns Oreo, Ritz, Cadbury, Milka, and Toblerone. The current yield is 3.2%, backed by a quarterly dividend that stepped up to $0.50 beginning with the September 30, 2025 ex-date, extending a run of annual hikes visible in the record from $0.13 in 2013 to today. Full-year 2025 operating cash flow of $4.51 billion against $2.49 billion in dividend payments leaves clear coverage even after $1.28 billion of capex, and management guided FY2026 free cash flow to roughly $3 billion.

The bull case is scale in snacking with emerging-market horsepower. Q2 adjusted EPS of $0.73 beat the $0.68 estimate, with Latin America up 15.1% and AMEA up 8.2%. CEO Dirk Van de Put said on the Q2 call that "emerging markets, strong volume-led growth, we expect that to continue," and CFO Luca Zaramella framed the profit trajectory bluntly: "You're going to see an acceleration of the gross profit dollar number, particularly in Q3, but also in Q4." Risk: cocoa cost volatility pressured Q2 adjusted operating margin by 120 basis points, and Europe organic revenue was down 1.0%.

Amdocs

Amdocs (NASDAQ:DOX) sells the software and managed services that run telecom operators' billing and customer systems. The dividend yield is 3.6%, with the quarterly rate lifted to $0.569 in fiscal 2026 from $0.527 in fiscal 2025, continuing a hike cadence visible from $0.155 in 2014. Trailing EPS of $4.21 and fiscal 2025 operating cash flow of $749 million against $224 million in dividends and $104 million in capex give the payout wide coverage.

The bull case is the annuity-like managed services base. Q3 non-GAAP EPS of $1.84 beat the $1.65 estimate, managed services made up 67% of revenue at $790.5 million with near-100% renewal rates, and 12-month backlog reached $4.26 billion. A new 10-year partnership with Liberty Latin America for the aOS agentic operating system anchors the AI pillar, and roughly $600 million of buyback capacity remains. Risk: shares are down 21% year to date on telco spending caution and a $106 million restructuring charge that pressured GAAP net income.

Ituran Location and Control

Ituran Location and Control (NASDAQ:ITRN) runs vehicle telematics and stolen-vehicle recovery subscriptions in Israel and Latin America. The regular quarterly dividend is $0.50, alongside a $1.50 special payment tied to the March 30, 2026 ex-date. The regular rate stepped up from $0.39 across 2024 to $0.50 across 2025 and 2026. Trailing EPS of $3.23, a $103.7 million net cash balance sheet with no debt, and Q2 operating cash flow of $32.22 million underwrite the payout.

The bull case is a growing recurring subscription book with expanding margins. Q2 revenue rose 20.7% to $104.79 million, subscription revenue was up 25% at $79.82 million, and Ituran added 41,000 net subscribers to reach a base of 2,711,000. Gross margin expanded to 50.9%. Risk: geographic concentration in Israel and Latin America and shekel currency exposure can whipsaw reported results.

These five names are stitched together by one idea: dividends paid out of contracted rates, fee income, subscription revenue, or globally diversified snack cash flows rather than cyclical earnings. YORW and WTW anchor the list on multi-decade hike track records (if you want the tier above that, the 50-year club, we ranked ten of them by valuation in a free Dividend Kings report); MDLZ and DOX add mid-single-digit yields with covered cash flows; ITRN brings a debt-free balance sheet and a special payment on top of a rising regular dividend. Heading into year end, that mix of durability and rising payouts is what income investors should be prioritizing.

Learn 7 Secret Wealth Tips High Net Worth Investors Use

How do you continue to grow a seven-figure portfolio in retirement? The last thing you want is to run out of money, you want your money to generate lasting income while you enjoy your life.

Learn seven strategies high net worth investors use with new report: The Seven Secrets of High Net Worth Investors from Fisher Investments. Get your guide here (sponsor)

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