Whether its crypto or stable coins or electric vehicles, cannabis or other hot sectors, the fact is there’s a lot of momentum in new disruptive stocks. That’s great for the short term. But for long-term investors, dividend stocks still need a significant place in your portfolio.

And that’s more important now than ever.

Inflation is becoming the hot new word when it comes to the economy and the markets. Initially, the Federal Reserve said that inflation was “transitory,” meaning it was going to fade after an initial spike. But now, the view is becoming more long term. Supply chain and energy issues are indicating inflation will be with us for a while.

The dividend stocks here don’t have inflation-beating dividends, but they do have a solid growth component as well. And they are solid long-term investments to underpin your growth picks, no matter how aggressive. You can also reinvest the dividends to add to your positions if you don’t want the cash.

• Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF)
• Cincinnati Financial (NASDAQ:CINF)
• EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG)
• Prudential Financial (NYSE:PRU)
• Blackstone (NYSE:BX)
• Marsh & McLennan (NYSE:MMC)
• Robert Half International (NYSE:RHI)

Dividend Stocks: Raymond James Financial (RJF)

This financial services firm goes back nearly six decades and continues to grow its services and global reach. For our purposes, what’s most compelling about this dividend stock is the fact that it has 135 consecutive quarters of profitability under its belt.

That’s a sturdy company, especially in a volatile sector. It also means its dividend is very reliable. Granted, at 1%, it’s not a staggering dividend yield, but given the stock is up 58% year-to-date, it shows RJF is shareholder friendly.

The firm has slightly more than $1 trillion assets under management. That kind of global reach and market presence helps keep the firm big but also agile. That’s going to be important in quarters to come.

This stock has an ‘B’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

Cincinnati Financial (CINF)

In today’s market, it’s not unusual to see a relatively conservative company like a leading insurer have 41% gains YTD. But usually that comes with a significant price-to-earnings ratio to match.

The hope is, the stock will grow fast enough to lower that P/E by growing its earnings at a healthy clip. But for CINF stock, its current rally still leaves it with a current P/E just below 8x. That’s right, a 41% run in the stock, yet the P/E remains in the single digits.

That means there’s still a lot of value left in this stock. And beyond the growth, it also offers a 2% dividend, which can be reinvested into the stock or rolled over into a money market. Either way, this is a great stress-free dividend stock with strength and durability.

This stock has an ‘A’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

Dividend Stocks: EOG Resources (EOG)

With a $55 billion market cap, EOG is a good-sized upstream oil and gas company. Upstream companies are also called exploration and production (E&P) companies. They discover and drill for oil and natural gas.

Most of EOG’s production operations are in the U.S. shale regions. It’s one of the top producers in the Eagle Ford shale and has other operations in the Permian Bakken and other shales around the country.

With energy prices on the rise, EOG stands to benefit significantly and the stock reflects that — it’s up 80% YTD. And it still has a current P/E of 18x. What’s more, it’s still a quality dividend stock. EOG stock delivers a 3.1% dividend, even after its big run.

This stock has an ‘A’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

Prudential Financial (PRU)

Like previous pick CINF, PRU is an insurer that also uses its cash for other opportunities like mutual funds and annuities. Its lineage goes back to 1875. And its business now extends to more than 40 countries.

When you have an operation that has been able to grow for nearly 150 years, you have hit on a very stable organization that understands long-term planning and discipline. It hasn’t been lured down sexy paths for quick money fads. It sticks to its tried and true practices and continues to modernize to stay competitive.

This is a good market for PRU. On the insurance side, all the cash and cash equivalents it has for paying out claims sit in U.S. Treasuries. As yields go up, PRU makes more money it can deploy in other more lucrative areas.

PRU is also one of the more reliable dividend stocks in the sector. And it’s generous. Currently, PRU stock has gained 44% YTD, yet it has a P/E of 6x and has a 4.2% dividend.

This stock has an ‘B’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

Dividend Stocks: Blackstone (BX)

As one of the leading asset management companies in the world, BX has been very busy recently. Basically BX buys companies or creates funds in specific sectors and then manages these assets until it sells them off for a profit or runs them as part of its assets.

It has been one of the leading leveraged buyout companies in the world over its nearly four decades in the business. It currently has a market cap of $167 billion and the stock has gained a stunning 130% YTD.

Yet even after all that success, it still trades at a P/E of 19x. And while it’s not one of the more generous dividend stocks, it has a sturdy 2.5% dividend. The current market will likely see a lot more activity from BX and its peers in coming quarters.

This stock has an ‘A’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

Marsh & McLennan (MMC)

While the origins of MMC go back 150 years in Chicago, it officially became its current self in 1906. Fundamentally, it’s an insurance and reinsurance company with a consulting and risk management division as well as mutual fund company. In 1970, it bought Putnam Investments fund family.

You might not be familiar with the company since it operates its divisions under different names and it’s really a corporate-facing insurance broker. Actually it’s one of the largest insurance brokers in the world.

Its platform of business units have continued to keep MMC in the top half of the Fortune 500 for decades. And it has been doing well this year. It has gained 48% YTD yet still distributes a practical 1.3% dividend.

This stock has an ‘A’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

Dividend Stocks: Robert Half International (RHI)

After WWII the U.S. economy was opening up again. New businesses and new industries meant one thing to Robert Half: the need for accountants was going to take off. So, in 1948 he started a placement agency for accountants.

By the 1980s RHI had expanded its hiring agency model beyond accountants. And today, it has hundreds of offices in 18 countries. It’s also one of the top recruiters in the U.S. at a time when employees are in great demand.

Obviously the employment market is cyclical but RHI has been wise about broadening its base to include counter-cyclical sectors as well as popular ones. And in both expanding and contracting markets temp workers are always in great demand.

The stock is up 90% YTD, yet it has a P/E of just 25x. And it still has a steady 1.3% dividend.

This stock has an ‘A’ rating in my Dividend Grader.

On the date of publication, Louis Navellier has positions in RJF, CINF and EOG in this article. Louis Navellier did not have (either directly or indirectly) any other positions in the securities mentioned in this article. The InvestorPlace Research Staff member primarily responsible for this article did not hold (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer, subject to the InvestorPlace.com Publishing Guidelines.

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