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Companies with a long history of paying dividends and consistently hiking them remain appealing to income-focused investors. Southern, Xcel Energy and Royalty Pharma have rewarded their shareholders for several decades and recently announced dividend increases. Furthermore, these companies offer high dividend yields of over 3%.

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The Southern Company 

The Southern Company (NYSE:SO) generates, transmits and distributes electricity. Incorporated in 1945 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, it is one of the largest utilities in the U.S. It serves nine million customers with vertically integrated electric utilities in three states and natural gas distribution utilities in four states.

Southern has raised its dividends every year for the last 23 years. According to the company's most recent dividend hike announcement on April 22, its Board of Directors increased the quarterly dividend from $0.70 to $0.72, equal to an annual figure of $2.88 per share. Currently, the dividend yield on the stock is 3.11%.

The company's annual revenue (as of June 30, 2024) is $26.1 billion. According to Southern’s most recent earnings release on Aug. 1, it generated revenues of $6.46 billion and an EPS of $1.10 for Q2 2024. Both figures exceeded Street estimates.

Check out this article by Benzinga to learn about Southern’s recent short interest.

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Xcel Energy

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) generates, purchases, transmits, distributes and sells electricity. It is also one of the largest renewable energy owners and suppliers in the U.S., with more than half its electricity sales coming from carbon-free energy. Xcel manages utilities serving 3.8 million electric customers and 2.1 million natural gas customers in eight states.