Better Dividend Stock: Oracle or Cisco Systems?

Image credit: Photodisc/Thinkstock.

When it comes to technology stocks, Oracle and Cisco Systems can both count themselves among the elite, but that doesn't mean income-seeking investors should view them as interchangeable.

If we compare Oracle and Cisco Systems in terms of the three most important dividend metrics, as I do in the brief slideshow below, we find that:

Both companies have respectable dividend yields. But while one of them currently comes in below the 2.11% average yield of the S&P 500, the other exceeds it.
Both have easily manageable payout ratios, from 27% to 44%, though one is clearly better than the other.
Finally, Oracle's and Cisco Systems' dividend histories, though brief compared to other dividend stocks, seem to suggest that their payouts will increase in the future, as both companies have consistently raised their distributions over the past few years.

At the end of the day, if an income investor had to choose between these two stocks based solely on these three metrics, then Cisco Systems seems to take the cake. To see why, simply scroll through the brief slideshow below.

All data in the slideshow was sourced from YCharts.com on Nov. 18, 2015. Slideshow image credit: iStock/Thinkstock.

The article Better Dividend Stock: Oracle or Cisco Systems? originally appeared on Fool.com.

John Maxfield has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Oracle. The Motley Fool recommends Cisco Systems. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.