Abbott Laboratories is a Dividend Centenarian that’s paid uninterrupted quarterly distributions since 1924 and raised its dividend every year for 54 years. Yet, this stock never seems to get much investor attention.

As a long-time Abbott Laboratories shareholder, I want to explain why this is a great buy-and-hold investment that’s overlooked by both Wall Street and Main Street.

Abbott Laboratories is a global healthcare company that makes products for both the retail and professional markets. You might recognize Abbott through everyday items like Ensure protein shakes or Pedialyte electrolyte drinks. But the firm also produces more clinical products, including diagnostic kits used by hospitals to test for infectious diseases and medical devices such as pacemakers.

This is a company whose portfolio runs the gamut from off-the-shelf retail products to high-tech medical devices.

As an investment, Abbott is a long-term winner.

The company has a 10-year average annual total return of 13.03%, not quite a market-beater but still impressive for a company that doesn’t operate in a fast-growing sector like cloud computing or artificial intelligence.

On top of this, Abbott has grown its dividend by 70% since 2020.

An investor who bought this stock on January 6th, 2020, would have paid $85.36 per share. Each share would have distributed a $0.36 quarterly dividend. Or, $1.44 in total annual dividend income.

Today, Abbott trades for $125.45 per share and pays a $0.63/share quarterly dividend.

Or, $2.52 in total annual dividends.

This investor who bought in 2020 would have seen their yield on cost grow from 1.68% to 2.95%, almost doubling in just five years.

As an investment, Abbott Labs isn’t particularly cheap. This stock currently trades at a price to earnings ratio of 24.35 which is in-line with the general market. The stock also pays a 2.01% starting yield which some investors may find low. But, the company has a safe payout ratio of 47.29% and an inflation-beating 5-year compound annual dividend growth rate of 10.38%.

I usually buy this stock whenever it dips below $110 per share.

But even at its current valuation, Abbott offers a decent 2%+ starting yield backed by 54 consecutive years of dividend growth. While not the cheapest stock or the highest yielding, Abbott is still a great buy-and-hold investment that quietly compounds year after year.

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Disclaimer: This article is for entertainment purposes only. It is not financial advice, always do your own research.