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The Best DRIP Stocks Now | 15 No-Fee Dividend Champions


Updated on January 16th, 2025 by Bob Ciura

DRIP stands for Dividend Reinvestment Plan. When an investor is enrolled in DRIP stocks, it means that incoming dividend payments are used to purchase more shares of the issuing company – automatically.

Many businesses offer DRIPs that require the investors to pay fees. Obviously, paying fees is a negative for investors. As a general rule, investors are better off avoiding DRIP stocks that charge fees.

Fortunately, many companies offer no-fee DRIP stocks. These allow investors to use their hard-earned dividends to build even larger positions in their favorite high-quality, dividend-paying companies – for free.

The Dividend Champions are a group of quality dividend stocks that have raised their dividends for at least 25 consecutive years.

You can download your free copy of the Dividend Champions list, along with relevant financial metrics like price-to-earnings ratios, dividend yields, and payout ratios, by clicking on the link below:

 

Click here to instantly download your free spreadsheet of all Dividend Champions now, along with important investing metrics.

Think about the powerful combination of DRIPs and Dividend Champions…

You are reinvesting dividends into a company that pays higher dividends every year. This means that every year you get more shares – and each share is paying you more dividend income than the previous year.

This makes a powerful (and cost-effective) compounding machine.

This article takes a look at the top 15 Dividend Champions that are no-fee DRIP stocks, ranked in order of expected total returns from lowest to highest.

The updated list for 2025 includes our top 15 Dividend Champions, ranked by expected returns according to the Sure Analysis Research Database, that offer no-fee DRIPs to shareholders.

You can skip to analysis of any individual Dividend Champion below:

Additionally, please see the video below for more coverage.

#15: Northrop Grumman (NOC)

Northrop Grumman Corporation is one of the leading defense stocks.

It reports four business segments: Aeronautics Systems (aircraft and UAVs), Mission Systems (radars, sensors and systems for surveillance and targeting), Defense Systems (sustainment and modernization, directed energy, tactical weapons), and Space Systems (missile defense, space systems, hypersonics and space launchers).

Northrop Grumman makes the B-2 Spirit, E-2D, E-8C, RQ-4 Global Hawk, MQ-4C Triton, and MQ-8B/C Fire Scout. The company also provides content on the F-35 and F/A-18.

It won the contract for the B-21 Raider. The company had revenue of over $39.3B in 2023.

Northrop Grumman reported excellent results for Q2 FY 2024 on July 25th, 2024. Company-wide revenue increased 7% and diluted earnings per share rose 19% to $6.36 from $5.34 on a year-over-year basis.

Revenue for Aeronautics Systems rose 14% year-over-year due to higher volumes in restricted, Triton, and F-35 programs.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on NOC (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#14: Tompkins Financial (TMP)

Tompkins Financial is a regional financial services holding company headquartered in Ithaca, NY that can trace its roots back more than 180 years. It has total assets of about $8 billion, which produce about $300 million in annual revenue.

The company offers a wide range of services, including checking and deposit accounts, time deposits, loans, credit cards, insurance services, and wealth management to its customers in New York and Pennsylvania.

Tompkins also sports a 38-year dividend increase streak after boosting its payout for November 2024.

Tompkins posted third quarter earnings on October 25th, 2024, and results were better than expected on both the top and bottom lines, and by some margin for both.

Earnings-per-share came to $1.30, which was nine cents ahead of estimates. Revenue was $76.6 million, which was about $1 million ahead of expectations.

Net interest margin was 2.79%, which was up six basis points from the second quarter, and up four basis points from the year-ago period. Total average cost of funds was up five basis points from Q2, and down 10 basis points from the year-ago period.

Total fee-based services revenues were up about 3.2% from the year-ago period, but only by about $648,000 given its small size in terms of total revenue. Non-interest expenses were flat to the year-ago period, as well as to the second quarter of this year.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on TMP (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#13: Illinois Tool Works (ITW)

Illinois Tool Works is a diversified multi-industrial manufacturer with seven unique operating segments: Automotive, Food Equipment, Test & Measurement, Welding, Polymers & Fluids, Construction Products and Specialty Products.

Last year the company generated $16.1 billion in revenue.

On October 30th, 2024, Illinois Tool Works reported third quarter 2024 results for the period ending September 30th, 2024. For the quarter, revenue came in at $4.0 billion, shrinking 1.6% year-over-year. Sales declined 3.3% in the Automotive OEM segment, the largest out of the company’s seven segments.

The Specialty Products segment grew revenues by 5.7%. Meanwhile, Food Equipment, Test & Measurement and Electronics, Welding, Polymers & Fluids and
Construction Products saw revenue decline -0.2%, -0.2%, -1.3%, -1.9%, and -8.1%, respectively.

Net income equaled $1,160 million or $3.91 per share compared to $772 million or $2.55 per share in Q3 2023. In the third quarter, ITW repurchased $375 million of its shares. It also raised its dividend by 7% to $6.00 annually, marking its 61st consecutive annual dividend increase.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on ITW (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#12: A.O. Smith (AOS)

A.O. Smith is a leading manufacturer of residential and commercial water heaters, boilers and water treatment
products. It generates two-thirds of its sales in North America, and most of the rest in China.

A.O. Smith has raised its dividend for 30 years in a row, making the company a Dividend Aristocrat. The company was founded in 1874 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, WI.

A.O. Smith reported its third quarter earnings results on October 22. The company generated revenues of $903 million during the quarter, which represents a decline of 4% compared to the prior year’s quarter.

Revenue declined by 1% in North America, but the international business saw a wider decline, primarily due to lower sales in China, which has a troubled real estate market.

A.O. Smith generated earnings-per-share of $0.82 during the third quarter, which was down 9% on a year over year basis.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on AOS (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#11: UGI Corp. (UGI)

UGI Corporation is a gas and electric utility that operates in Pennsylvania, in addition to a large energy distribution business that serves the entire US and other parts of the world.

It was founded in 1882 and has paid consecutive dividends since 1885. Its market capitalization is $6.2 billion. The company operates in four reporting segments: AmeriGas, UGI International, Midstream & Marketing, and UGI Utilities.

On November 22, 2024, UGI Corporation reported record results for fiscal 2024, achieving an all-time high adjusted diluted EPS of $3.06, driven by strong execution of strategic priorities and efficiency improvements.

The company realized a $75 million reduction in operating expenses ahead of schedule, achieving permanent cost savings targeted for fiscal 2025.

UGI also returned $320 million to shareholders through dividends, continuing a 140-year streak of consecutive dividend payments and demonstrating a five-year EPS CAGR of 6%.

Key accomplishments included significant investments in infrastructure, with $500 million allocated to utility improvements and the completion of the Moody RNG project, expected to produce 300 MMCF annually.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on UGI (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#10: Realty Income (O)

Realty Income is a retail real estate focused REIT that has become famous for its successful dividend growth history and monthly dividend payments.

Realty Income owns retail properties that are not part of a wider retail development (such as a mall), but instead are standalone properties. This means that the properties are viable for many different tenants, including government services, healthcare services, and entertainment.

Realty Income reported third-quarter 2024 earnings, with EPS at $0.30, missing estimates by $0.06, but revenue of $1.27 billion, a 26% year-over-year increase, beat expectations by $10.01 million. Net income for common shareholders was $261.8 million.

The company generated $915.6 million in Adjusted Funds from Operations (AFFO), or $1.05 per share. Realty Income invested $740.1 million in new properties, achieving an initial average cash yield of 7.4%, while maintaining a portfolio occupancy of 98.7%.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Realty Income (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#9: Universal Corporation (UVV)

Universal Corporation is a market leader in supplying leaf tobacco and other plant-based inputs to consumer product manufacturers.

The Tobacco Operations segment buys and sells tobacco used to make cigarettes, cigars, pipe tobacco, and smokeless products.

Universal buys tobacco from its suppliers, processes it, and sells it to large tobacco companies in the US and internationally.

Source: Investor Presentation

The Ingredient Operations deal mainly with vegetables and fruits but is significantly smaller than the tobacco operations. Universal has been growing this business through acquisitions starting in 2020.

Universal Corporation reported its second quarter earnings results on November 7. The company generated revenues of $710 million during the quarter.

Additionally, Universal Corporation sold carryover crops during the period, which added to the company’s revenue performance.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on Universal (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#8: S&P Global (SPGI)

S&P Global is a worldwide provider of financial services and business information and revenue of over $13 billion.

Through its various segments, it provides credit ratings, benchmarks and indices, analytics, and other data to commodity market participants, capital markets, and automotive markets.

S&P Global has paid dividends continuously since 1937 and has increased its payout for 51 consecutive years.

S&P Global posted third quarter earnings on October 24th, 2024, and results were quite strong once again. Adjusted earnings-per-share came to $3.89, which was 25 cents ahead of estimates. Earnings were down from $4.04 in Q2, but much higher than $3.21 in the year-ago period.

Revenue soared 16% higher year-on-year to $3.58 billion, which also beat estimates by $150 million. Growth in the Ratings and Indices segment led the top line higher in Q3, although strength was broad.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on SPGI (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#7: Emerson Electric (EMR)

Emerson Electric is a diversified global leader in technology and engineering. Its global customer base and diverse product and service offerings afford it more than $17 billion in annual revenue.

Emerson posted fourth quarter and full-year earnings on November 5th, 2024, and results were better than expected on both the top and bottom lines. Adjusted earnings-per-share came to $1.48 for the quarter, which was a penny ahead of estimates.

Revenue was up 13% year-over-year to $4.62 billion, which was $60 million ahead of expectations. Organic  sales were up 4%, with the balance accruing from net acquisitions and divestitures.

Adjusted profit margin was up 70 basis points year-over-year in the fourth quarter, rising to 26.2% of revenue. Operating cash flow was up 8% year-over-year to $1.073 billion, while free cash flow was up 10% to $905 million.

Emerson also boosted its dividend for the 68th consecutive year.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on EMR (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#6: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Johnson & Johnson was founded in 1886 and has transformed into one of the largest companies in the world. Johnson & Johnson is a mega-cap stock. The company generates annual sales above $99 billion.

The company operates a diversified business model, allowing it to appeal to a wide variety of customers within the healthcare sector.

J&J now operates two segments, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, after spinning off its consumer health franchises.

Johnson & Johnson reported third-quarter 2024 sales growth of 5.2%, reaching $22.5 billion, with operational growth of 6.3%.

Source: Investor Presentation

However, earnings per share (EPS) decreased by 34.3%, largely due to a one-time special charge and acquired in-process research and development (IPR&D).

Adjusted EPS fell 9.0% to $2.42, driven by the same IPR&D impact. The company made significant advancements, including approvals for treatments like TREMFYA and RYBREVANT, and the submission of a new general surgery robotic system, OTTAVA.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on JNJ (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#5: Northwest Natural Gas (NWN)

NW Natural was founded in 1859 and has grown from just a handful of customers to serving more than 760,000 today. The utility’s mission is to deliver natural gas to its customers in the Pacific Northwest.

The company’s locations served are shown in the image below.

Source: Investor Presentation

Northwest Natural Holding reported a third-quarter 2024 net loss of $27.2 million, or $0.71 per share, compared to a net loss of $23.7 million, or $0.65 per share, in the same period in 2023. Revenue was $136.93 million, a 3.21% year-over-year decrease, but exceeded expectations by $4.47 million.

For the first nine months of 2024, net income was $33.9 million, or $0.88 per share, down from $49.2 million, or $1.37 per share, for the same period in 2023.

The company added nearly 17,000 gas and water utility connections over the past 12 months, achieving a growth rate of 1.9%, largely driven by water acquisitions.

Investments of $294 million in gas and water systems supported reliability and growth. Recently implemented new rates in Oregon include a 4.7% average increase for residential customers.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on NWN (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#4: Nordson Corporation (NDSN)

Nordson was founded in 1954 in Amherst, Ohio by brothers Eric and Evan Nord, but the company can trace its roots back to 1909 with the U.S. Automatic Company.

Today the company has operations in over 35 countries and engineers, manufactures, and markets products used for dispensing adhesives, coatings, sealants, biomaterials, plastics, and other materials, with applications ranging from diapers and straws to cell phones and aerospace.

Source: Investor Presentation

On August 14th, 2024, Nordson increased its dividend by 15% to $0.78 per share quarterly, marking 61 years of increases.

On December 11th, 2024, Nordson reported fourth quarter results for the period ending October 31st, 2024. For the quarter, the company reported sales of $744 million, 4% higher compared to $719 million in Q4 2023, which was driven by a positive acquisition impact, and offset by organic decrease of 3%.

Industrial Precision saw sales decrease by 3%, while the Medical and Fluid Solutions and Advanced Technology Solutions segments had sales increases of 19% and 5%, respectively. The company generated adjusted earnings per share of $2.78, a 3% increase compared to the same prior-year quarter.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on NDSN (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#3: Polaris Inc. (PII)

Polaris designs, engineers, and manufactures snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and motorcycles. In addition, related accessories and replacement parts are sold with these vehicles through dealers located throughout the U.S.

The company operates under 30+ brands including Polaris, Ranger, RZR, Sportsman, Indian Motorcycle, Slingshot and Transamerican Auto Parts. The global powersports maker, serving over 100 countries, generated $8.9 billion in sales in 2023.

On February 1st, 2024, Polaris raised its quarterly dividend 1.5% to $0.66.

On October 22nd, 2024, Polaris reported third quarter results for the period ending September 30th, 2024. For the quarter, revenue decreased 23.6% to $1.72 billion, which missed estimates by $50 million.

Source: Investor Presentation

Adjusted earnings-per-share of $0.73 compared very unfavorably to $2.72 in the prior year and was $0.18 less than expected.

For the quarter, Marine sales were down 36%, On-Road fell 13%, and Off-Road, the largest component of the company, declined 24%. Decreases in all three businesses were mostly due to lower volumes.

Off-Road was negatively impacted by higher promotional spend and product mix. On-Road and Marine both suffered from weaker product mix. Gross margin contracted 204 basis points to 20.6%.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on PII (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#2: Hormel Foods (HRL)

Hormel Foods is a juggernaut in the food products industry with nearly $10 billion in annual revenue. It has a large portfolio of category-leading brands. Just a few of its top brands include include Skippy, SPAM, Applegate, Justin’s, and more than 30 others.

It has also pursued acquisitions to drive growth. For example, in 2021, Hormel acquired the Planters snack nuts business from Kraft-Heinz (KHC) for $3.35 billion, which has boosted Hormel’s growth.

Source: Investor Presentation

Hormel posted fourth quarter and full-year earnings on December 4th, 2024, and results were in line with expectations. The company posted adjusted earnings-per-share of 42 cents, which met estimates. Revenue was off 2% year-on-year to $3.14 billion, also hitting estimates.

Operating income was $308 million for the quarter on an adjusted basis, or 9.8% of revenue. Operating cash flow was $409 million for Q4. For the year, sales were $11.9 billion, and adjusted operating income was $1.1 billion, or 9.6% of revenue. Adjusted earnings-per-share was $1.58. Operating cash flow hit a record of $1.3 billion.

Guidance for 2025 was initiated at $11.9 billion to $12.2 billion in sales, with organic net sales growth of 1% to 3%.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on HRL (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

#1: California Water Service Group (CWT)

California Water Service is a water stock and is the third-largest publicly-owned water utility in the United States.

It was founded in 1926 and has six subsidiaries that provide water to approximately 2 million people in 100 communities, primarily in California but also in Washington, New Mexico and Hawaii.

Source: Investor Presentation

California Water Service reported its third quarter earnings results on October 31st. Operating revenues totaled $300 million during the quarter, which was 18% higher than the same quarter last year.

This represents a stronger performance compared to what the analyst community had forecasted.

The operating revenue increase was driven by rate increases over the last year as well as by higher accrued unbilled revenue compared to the previous year’s quarter.

Click here to download our most recent Sure Analysis report on CWT (preview of page 1 of 3 shown below):

Final Thoughts and Additional Resources

Enrolling in DRIP stocks can be a great way to compound your portfolio income over time. Additional resources are listed below for investors interested in further research for DRIP stocks.

For dividend growth investors interested in DRIP stocks, the 15 companies mentioned in this article are a great place to start. Each business is very shareholder friendly, as evidenced by their long dividend histories and their willingness to offer investors no-fee DRIP stocks.

At Sure Dividend, we often advocate for investing in companies with a high probability of increasing their dividends each and every year.

If that strategy appeals to you, it may be useful to browse through the following databases of dividend growth stocks:

Thanks for reading this article. Please send any feedback, corrections, or questions to support@suredividend.com.



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