The Market Is Down 5% in 2026. Here’s the Best Dividend Stock to Buy With $10,000 Right Now.

The stock market is measured as: S&P 500 The index, which covers America’s 500 largest companies, is down 5.4% so far this year as of March 24. A decline in the S&P 500 means that the stocks of several companies also lose value. For dividend-paying stocks, a lower stock price means an increased dividend yield.
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So, which dividend payer might you consider for your long-term portfolio, do you have $10,000, $100 or $100,000 to invest? Well, I recommend you buy one bundle Number of solid dividend payers with a single method exchange-traded fund (ETF): Schwab US Dividend Stock ETF (NYSEMKT:SCHD). (Note that an ETF is a fund that trades like a stock.)
From where Schwab US Dividend Stock ETF? Because it offers the best of both worlds: price appreciation and dividend income. The S&P 500 recently had a dividend yield of just 1.1%. But the Schwab ETF’s return was recently 3.3%; 3 times more! Also check out its performance:
|
Period |
Average Annual Earnings |
|---|---|
|
last 3 years |
12.90% |
|
last 5 years |
8.92% |
|
last 10 years |
12.36% |
Data source: Morningstar.com, as of March 24, 2026.
The ETF tracks an index of healthy dividend payers, holding about 100 of them. Here are the top 10 holdings of recent times:
|
to stock |
Weight in ETF |
Last Return |
|---|---|---|
|
1. Strip |
4.58% |
5.31% |
|
2. ConocoPhillips |
4.20% |
2.60% |
|
3. Verizon Communications |
4.10% |
5.56% |
|
4. Merck |
3.99% |
2.92% |
|
5. Texas Appliances |
3.96% |
2.92% |
|
6. Coca Cola |
3.94% |
2.76% |
|
7. United Health Group |
3.84% |
3.25% |
|
8. Abbott Laboratories |
3.79% |
2.42% |
|
9. PepsiCo |
3.79% |
3.78% |
|
10. amgen |
3.79% |
2.89% |
Data source: Yahoo! Finance and Morningstar.com as of March 25, 2026.
This single investment will allow you to quickly indirectly hold shares of nearly 100 solid dividend payers that are likely to grow over time, while also providing you with plenty of passive income that should grow over time. If the stock market stalls or crashes, most of the fund’s components will likely continue paying dividends, making it a solid asset in these difficult times. Overall, it’s a tough proposition to beat.
Before buying shares in the Schwab US Dividend Equity ETF, consider:
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