LOW vs KO vs SCHD vs NOBL: 5-Year Dividend Growth & Yield-on-Cost Battle

· 3 min read
DividendXray comparison of LOW, KO, SCHD, and NOBL showing dividend growth and yield on cost metrics
LOW, KO, SCHD, and NOBL compared across dividend growth, yield-on-cost expansion, and five-year total return using DividendXray analytics.

LOW vs KO vs SCHD vs NOBL: Dividend Income Battle

Today we’re using DividendXray to run a structured dividend battle between four distinct income strategies:

  • LOW — a dividend growth stock with strong capital appreciation
  • KO — a defensive consumer staple with consistent income
  • SCHD — a diversified dividend ETF focused on quality and efficiency
  • NOBL — a dividend aristocrat ETF emphasizing long-term dividend discipline

Each represents a different approach to dividend investing. The goal is simple: which one delivers the strongest long-term income performance?

Category Winners

Let’s start with the headline results.

  • Dividend Growth (5-Year CAGR): LOW leads with an impressive 11.51% dividend CAGR.
  • Yield-on-Cost Growth: LOW shows the strongest improvement from the first to the last year.
  • Price Return (5-Year): LOW again comes out ahead with a 63.15% total return.

While NOBL, SCHD, and KO deliver solid and reliable results, none of them take a category win in this specific five-year window.

LOW clearly dominates from a raw growth perspective.

Yield on Cost Over Time

Yield on cost is one of the most important metrics for long-term dividend investors. It shows how dividend income grows relative to the original capital invested — not the current market price.

Over the five-year period:

  • SCHD stands out for income efficiency, reaching approximately 4.90% yield on cost by the end of the window.
  • The other holdings grow more gradually but show steady upward income trends.
  • LOW demonstrates powerful compounding, while KO provides smoother, defensive progression.

This highlights an important distinction:

  • Individual dividend growth stocks like LOW can deliver higher upside.
  • Broad dividend ETFs like SCHD and NOBL offer diversification and smoother income compounding.
  • Defensive names like KO provide stability and reliability.

What This Battle Shows

There is no universal “best” dividend investment.

  • If you prioritize aggressive dividend growth and capital appreciation, LOW leads this battle.
  • If you value income efficiency and diversification, SCHD performs very well.
  • If you prefer long-term dividend discipline, NOBL remains consistent.
  • If you want defensive stability, KO continues to deliver dependable income growth.

Dividend investing is not just about current yield — it’s about how income evolves over time.

All charts and analytics in this analysis were created using DividendXray.

If you want to run your own dividend battles and track yield-on-cost growth across your portfolio, you can analyze and compare holdings directly inside the platform.