Dividend-paying stocks that combine healthy balance sheets with hefty yields can provide investors with steady incomes, cushion against market downturns, and grow investments at a healthy clip.
In the first quarter of 2025, the top-performing dividend-payers included renewable energy firm Innergex Renewable Energy INE, gold company Lundin Gold LUG, and oil and gas exploration and production company Veren VRN.
To find the quarter’s 10 best-performing income-focused stocks, we screened the Morningstar Canada Index—which measures the performance of Canada’s broad regional markets, targeting the top 97% of stocks by market capitalization—for companies with a forward dividend yield of at least 1.5%, excluding real estate investment trusts.
The Best-Performing Canadian Dividend Stocks of Q1 2025
1. Innergex Renewable Energy INE
2. Lundin Gold LUG
3. Veren VRN
4. Pan American Silver PAAS
5. Barrick Gold ABX
6. Maple Leaf Foods MFI
7. Birchcliff Energy BIR
8. Great-West Lifeco GWO
9. AltaGas ALA
10. Imperial Oil IMO
Best-Performing Dividend Stocks in Canada
Source: Morningstar Direct. Data as of March 31, 2025.
How Have Dividend Stocks Performed?
Over the past quarter, the Morningstar Canada Dividend Growth Index, which tracks the performance of Canadian stocks with a history of uninterrupted dividend growth and the capacity to sustain that growth, rose 5.6%. The Morningstar Canada Dividend Yield Focus Index, which tracks the performance of high-quality, dividend-paying Canadian stocks, was roughly flat. In the 12 months leading up to March 31, the dividend growth index gained 20.8% and the dividend yield focus index gained 12.5%.
1-Year Performance of Canadian Dividend Stocks
Source: Morningstar Direct. Data as of March 31, 2025.
The overall Canadian stock market, as measured by the Morningstar Canada Index, has gained 1.7% on the quarter and 16.9% on the year.
Yields and Metrics for February’s Best-Performing Dividend Stocks
Innergex Renewable Energy INE
Renewable energy firm Innergex Renewable Energy rose 69.2% in the first quarter and gained 73.8% over the past 12 months. Trading at C$13.53 per share, its stock has a forward dividend yield of 2.66%. Innergex Renewable Energy pays investors an annual dividend of C$0.36 per share. The stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 5 stars.
Lundin Gold LUG
Gold company Lundin Gold rose 46.8% in the first quarter and gained 139.9% over the past 12 months. At C$44.56 per share, its stock has a forward dividend yield of 3.84% and an annual dividend of C$1.71 per share. It has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 2 stars.
Oil and gas exploration and production company Veren gained 30.4% in the first quarter and fell 9.9% over the past 12 months. The stock’s C$9.52 price gives it a forward dividend yield of 4.83%. Veren pays investors an annual dividend of C$0.46 per share. The stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.
Pan American Silver PAAS
Gold company Pan American Silver rose 28.3% in the first quarter and gained 84.8% over the past 12 months. Trading at C$37.17 per share, Pan American Silver stock has a forward dividend yield of 1.55% and an annual dividend of C$0.58 per share. It has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 2 stars.
Barrick Gold ABX
Gold company Barrick Gold gained 26.0% in the first quarter and rose 26.5% over the past 12 months. Trading at C$27.94 per share, its forward dividend yield is 2.06%. Barrick Gold pays investors an annual dividend of C$0.57 per share. The stock, which has no economic moat, is trading at a 10% discount to its fair value estimate of C$31 per share, leaving it moderately undervalued. It has a Morningstar Rating of 4 stars.
Maple Leaf Foods MFI
Packaged foods company Maple Leaf Foods gained 24.4% in the first quarter and rose 16.9% over the past 12 months. At C$25.07 per share, Maple Leaf Foods stock has a forward dividend yield of 3.83% and an annual dividend of C$0.96 per share. It has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.
Birchcliff Energy BIR
Oil and gas exploration and production company Birchcliff Energy rose 23.8% in the first quarter and gained 31.3% over the past 12 months. Trading at C$6.68 per share, Birchcliff Energy stock has a forward dividend yield of 4.94% and an annual dividend of C$0.12 per share. It has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.
Great-West Lifeco GWO
Life insurance company Great-West Lifeco rose 19.6% in the first quarter and gained 35.4% over the past 12 months. Trading at C$56.38 per share, Great-West Lifeco stock has a forward dividend yield of 4.33% and pays investors an annual dividend of C$2.44 per share. The stock, which has no economic moat, is currently trading at a 27% premium to its fair value estimate of C$44.50 per share, leaving it moderately overvalued, leaving it with a Morningstar Rating of 2 stars.
AltaGas ALA
Midstream oil and gas company AltaGas gained 18.8% in the first quarter and rose 36.0% over the past 12 months. The stock’s C$39.47 price gives it a forward dividend yield of 3.19%. AltaGas pays investors an annual dividend of C$1.26 per share. The stock has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.
Imperial Oil IMO
Oil and gas firm Imperial Oil rose 18.2% in the first quarter and gained 14.0% over the past 12 months. At C$103.95 per share, Imperial Oil has a forward dividend yield of 2.77% and an annual dividend of C$2.88 per share. It has a quantitative Morningstar Rating of 3 stars.
What Is the Morningstar Canada Index?
The Morningstar Canada Index measures the performance of Canada’s broad regional markets, targeting the top 97% of stocks by market capitalization. The index does not incorporate environmental, social, or governance criteria.
What Is the Morningstar Canada Dividend Yield Focus Index?
The Morningstar Canada Dividend Yield Focus Index captures the performance of a portfolio of high-quality, dividend-paying securities.
It’s a subset of the Morningstar Canada Index (which represents 97% of the equity market capitalization) that includes only stocks that pay dividends. The stocks are screened for economic moat and financial strength compared to others in their sector. Real estate investment trusts are excluded.
The 25 highest-yielding stocks are included in the index, weighted by the dollar value of the dividends. See the full rulebook here.
The Best Dividend Stock Leaders: More Ideas to Consider
Investors who would like to find more top-performing or cheap dividend stocks can do the following:
• Review the full list of stocks in the Morningstar Canada Dividend Yield Focus Index. Stocks with Morningstar Ratings of 4 or 5 stars are undervalued, according to our metrics.
• Use our Morningstar Stock Screener tool to find the best dividend stocks according to your specific criteria. You can search for stocks based on their dividend yields, valuation measures like price/earnings ratios, and more.
• When it comes to buying stocks, it’s more than just dividends. Read here how valuations and competitive advantages—known as economic moats—matter when it comes to a stock’s potential for outperformance.
• Read Morningstar’s Guide to Stock Investing to learn how our approach to investing can inform your stock-picking process.
Companies that are not formally covered by a Morningstar analyst are statistically matched to analyst-rated companies, allowing our models to calculate a quantitative star rating.
This article was compiled by Bella Albrecht, edited by Lauren Solberg, and reviewed by Nathalie Cordier.
The author or authors do not own shares in any securities mentioned in this article. Find out about Morningstar's editorial policies.