The Best Utility Dividend Stock for a Lifetime of Passive Income

Dividend stocks are the all-weather tires of the stock market. Study after study reinforces the idea that dividend stocks outperform non-payers by a wide margin, with a recent survey by JPMorgan Chase finding stocks that initiated and then raised their payouts over a 40-year period between 1972 and 2012 returned an average of 9.5% annually, versus just 1.6% for non-dividend-paying stocks. American States Water was founded in the notable year of 1929, meaning it's gone through the Great Depression, a world war, numerous recessions, and many other catastrophes.