Dividend Stocks in Demand

The major market averages are lower today after a disappointing December jobs report raised concerns that the economic recovery may not be as robust as expected.

On the flip side, investors are betting the Federal Reserve won’t be in such a rush to unwind its bond-buying stimulus. This is boosting the allure of Treasuries, which is pushing bond yields lower and making dividend-paying stocks, which tend to trade like bonds, more attractive.

You can see this affect at play today in the stock market.  Below is a list of the 20 stocks in the S&P 500 with the highest dividend yields.  Nineteen of them are trading higher, with an average gain of 1.2%:

S&P 500: Top 20 Dividend-Paying Stocks