How SCHD's Top Holdings Grew Dividend Income Over Time

Introduction

This visualization tracks the annual regular dividends per share paid by a fixed snapshot of ten selected SCHD holdings over the 2018–2025 period. Each stacked bar represents the combined annual dividends from owning one share of each listed company, allowing you to see how individual contributors and the total dividend stream evolved over time. The totals shown are not SCHD distributions and are not portfolio-weighted. Instead, they illustrate how the underlying companies' dividend payments changed on a per-share basis. The holdings list reflects a snapshot selected as of 2026-08-06, while the historical dividend data covers calendar years 2018 through 2025.

Key insights

• Combined Dividend Income Grew Consistently

  The combined annual dividend total increased from $30.80 in 2018 to $54.49 in 2025, representing a combined dividend CAGR of 8.49%. Every calendar year in the visualization shows a higher combined dividend total than the previous year, reflecting broad-based dividend growth across the selected companies.

• Growth Rates Varied Significantly Across Companies

  Dividend growth was not evenly distributed. UnitedHealth Group (UNH) delivered the fastest dividend CAGR at 14.18%, while Verizon (VZ) grew at a much slower 1.99% annual rate. This difference becomes increasingly visible in the stacked bars as faster-growing companies occupy a larger share of the combined dividend stream over time.

• Largest Contributors Continued to Expand

  By 2025, Amgen (AMGN) became the largest single dividend contributor, paying $9.52 per share during the year. Other major contributors such as Home Depot (HD), UnitedHealth (UNH), Chevron (CVX), and PepsiCo (PEP) also increased their annual dividends substantially, helping drive the growth in the overall stacked total.

• Yield on Cost Improved Over Time

  Each company includes an initial yield calculated from its historical starting annual dividend and standardized starting share price, along with an ending yield on cost using the same starting price. For example, Chevron increased from an initial yield of 5.0% to a 7.9% yield on cost, while Abbott Laboratories grew from 2.0% to 4.1%. These figures illustrate how growing dividends can increase income relative to an unchanged hypothetical purchase price and should not be interpreted as current market yields.

Methodology

Each stacked bar represents the sum of the annual regular dividends per share paid by one share of every listed company during a calendar year. The visualization is not portfolio-weighted, does not represent ETF-level income, and the combined dividend totals should not be interpreted as SCHD distributions. Initial yield is calculated using the annualized regular dividend in effect on the standardized historical starting-price date divided by that starting price. Ending yield on cost uses the latest calendar-year dividend divided by the same starting price, providing a consistent hypothetical cost basis across the timeline. Dividend CAGR is calculated using the first and latest calendar-year dividend totals. The standardized starting price is the adjusted closing price on the final trading day before the first chart year. Special dividends are excluded.

Related links

• Blog article
• YouTube video