Better Dividend: Abbott Laboratories vs. Medtronic, Inc.

In the health-care sector, few stocks boast names as well-known as Medtronic and Abbott Labs . Medtronic's leadership in the medical device sector and Abbott Labs's strength through medical diversity has made it a strong stock for years. Each stock also offers a reliable dividend, with both Medtronic and Abbott belonging to the S&P 500's Dividend Aristocrats, the group of companies that have raised their dividends annually for at least the past 25 years.

But which of these dividends is the better buy? Abbott offers the higher yield by a slight amount and is well-suited to keep that dividend growing with its strong nutritional business and diagnostics unit, but Medtronic's growth in up-and-coming medical device industries and dominance in major niches such as cardiology make it as reliable a stock as there is in health care.

Find out the winner in the video below, as Motley Fool contributor Dan Carroll takes you through the strengths of Abbott and Medtronic's dividends and which one should be the right call for your portfolio's health.

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Abbott's and Medtronic's dividends are a great part of their appeal as stocks for a good reason. One of the dirty secrets that few finance professionals will openly admit is the fact that dividend stocks as a group handily outperform their non-dividend-paying brethren. The reasons for this are too numerous to list here, but you can rest assured that it's true. However, knowing this is only half the battle. The other half is identifying which dividend stocks in particular are the best. With this in mind, our top analysts put together a free list of nine high-yielding stocks that should be in every income investor's portfolio. To learn the identity of these stocks instantly and for free, all you have to do is click here now.

The article Better Dividend: Abbott Laboratories vs. Medtronic, Inc. originally appeared on Fool.com.

Dan Carroll has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool owns shares of Medtronic. 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.

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