Boost portfolio income in the second half of 2026 with these cheap dividend payers

In an expensive stock market, investors may be hunting for bargains that also pay them to wait for any potential upside. Despite the recent volatility and recent tech sell-off, the broad market remains near all-time highs. In fact, veteran investor Jeremy Grantham told CNBC Friday that "this is the most expensive market in American history." By buying cheap dividend stocks, investors collect income as they wait for the assets to potentially increase in value. "The case for dividends is as strong as it's ever been, given the volatility in the markets, given the uncertainty about what the future looks like, and also given the importance of dividend growth as an offset to inflation that's stickier and higher," ClearBridge Investments portfolio manager Michael Clarfeld recently told CNBC . Yet not all dividend stocks are created equal. For instance, an elevated dividend can sometimes be a sign of distress at a company. With that in mind, CNBC Pro screened for names in the Vanguard Dividend Appreciation Index Fund ETF that have a dividend yield of 1.5% or more. The stocks are also well-liked by Wall Street: Each has buy ratings from 55% or more of the analysts covering them and price targets that are at least 20% above where the stocks currently trade, according to FactSet. The stocks are also down by at least 5% in the past three months. Abbott Laboratories , with a 2.7% dividend yield, is down nearly 10% in the past three months. …