Want Safe Dividend Income in 2026 and Beyond? Invest in This Ultra-High-Yield Stock.

Success with investing in high-yield dividend stocks can often be elusive. After all, high yield can often signal high risk, whether that's a high risk of a dividend cut or of negative developments driving share price declines that vastly exceed quarterly dividends and distributions.

However, among the scores of stocks with forward yields of 5% or more, Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE: EPD) stands out as a relatively safe and steady choice for income investors.

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Between its strong dividend growth track record and its game plan to capitalize on industry growth opportunities, it checks many important boxes for yield-focused investors.

There are numerous integrated oil and gas stocks with long dividend growth records. However, for example, ExxonMobil and Chevron typically have much lower forward dividend yields. There are also some oil and gas dividend stocks offering high yields, including those that exceed Enterprise Products Partners' yield.

But these high dividends are often inconsistent, not to mention contingent on oil and gas prices remaining at record highs. Current conditions notwithstanding, all it takes is a change in geopolitics or the emergence of a pandemic to shift crude oil and natural gas prices radically.

Hence, when it comes to energy stocks, high yields, and dividend growth, midstream is the name of the game. Midstream energy stocks, such as pipeline stocks, commonly meet all these criteria for two key reasons. First, most are master limited partnerships, pass-through entities that pay out most of their pretax earnings as distributions.

Second, the midstream energy business itself has a far more steady revenue model. With long-term fixed contracts, cash flows are consistent and steadily grow over time. So, among dozens of publicly traded pipeline MLPs, why does Enterprise Products Partners stand out?

The first unique feature of Enterprise Products Partners is its dividend growth track record. This MLP has 29 years of annual consecutive dividend increases under its belt. That makes this stock a little over two decades away from becoming one of the Dividend Kings, or stocks with 50 or more years of consecutive dividend increases.

Moreover, this MLP's growth streak signals a trend likely to continue, even during challenging times. After all, while competitors like Energy Transfer opted to slash distributions during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Enterprise Products Partners remained steadfast, knowing how important distribution growth is to its unitholders. Currently yielding 5.7%, over the past decade, its payout has grown by an average of 3.6% annually.

What about future growth? That brings us to this MLP's second standout feature: high exposure to energy industry growth trends. To capitalize on the rising demand for natural gas due to the artificial intelligence (AI) data center boom, Enterprise is expanding its more than 50,000-mile pipeline network. The MLP has nearly $5 billion in major capital projects under construction.

This growth points not only to further annualized growth in Enterprise's cash distributions, but also to unit buybacks. In October 2025, the MLP expanded its repurchase program with plans to buy back up to $5 billion in outstanding units. For income investors seeking high yields but with mitigated risk, consider Enterprise Product Partners a top choice.

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Thomas Niel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Chevron. The Motley Fool recommends Enterprise Products Partners. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Want Safe Dividend Income in 2026 and Beyond? Invest in This Ultra-High-Yield Stock. was originally published by The Motley Fool