Dividend powerhouses like Kimberly-Clark and General Mills: How RE Royalties could benefit from AI

Kimberly-Clark goes all out for dividends

Kimberly-Clark cemented its status as a dividend aristocrat in January with its 54th consecutive dividend increase. The company raised its quarterly distribution to USD 1.28 per share. Operationally, a strategic realignment is taking place under the title "Powering Care," in which the portfolio is being radically focused on high-growth, high-margin personal care categories. To free up capital for these profitable core areas, management has consistently divested low-margin units. Although this adjustment led to a slight decline in reported revenue in 2025 to USD 16.4 billion, organic revenue rose by 1.7% in parallel. Likely the most significant milestone for future profitability is the ongoing acquisition of Kenvue, the former consumer health division of Johnson & Johnson. This deal, valued at over USD 40 billion, is expected to be completed in 2026. Analysts at McKinsey emphasize that this far-reaching move would catapult Kimberly-Clark into the attractive wellness and preventive health market, which is growing at an annual rate of 6%.

General Mills also with problems

General Mills is considered the epitome of consistency. With a history of 127 years of uninterrupted dividend payments, the food company has proven that it generates reliable returns across all economic cycles. The company currently pays a quarterly dividend of USD 0.61. However, the current year poses challenges for management, as declining consumer sentiment and delayed volume growth require an adjustment of the internal strategy. Due to a volatile consumer environment, General Mills recently revised its organic net sales forecasts downward at the Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) conference.

RE Royalties: Renewable energy provides double-digit dividend yield

Far less well-known than the aforementioned dividend heavyweights is the Canadian company RE Royalties. Management has established a model that transfers the proven stability of mining royalties directly to the rapidly growing renewable energy sector. According to current market data, the company offers investors a dividend yield of around 11% in the form of a quarterly distribution of CAD 0.01. Instead of operating wind or solar farms itself and bearing technical and weather-related risks, RE Royalties provides project developers with capital in exchange for a percentage share of gross revenue. Since the agreed royalty fee is based solely on gross revenue, unforeseen increases in operating costs for the plant operator do not have a negative impact on RE Royalties' income.

RE Royalties plans to push ahead with its expansion in the US market in 2026. A key project is the far-reaching partnership with Solaris Energy, in which RE Royalties is investing a total of USD 9 million in portfolios for decentralized solar power plants. An initial portfolio consists of 15 projects in states such as California and Maine, many of which are already nearing commercial commissioning. This focus on decentralized energy generation aligns precisely with the guidelines of the International Energy Agency (IEA), which forecasts a massive expansion of renewable energy to 36% of global electricity supply capacity by 2026. The US infrastructure is desperately seeking fast, local energy solutions for the exponentially growing electricity demand of AI data centers, which makes RE Royalties' decentralized investment focus highly relevant to the market. Although renewable energy sources do not provide a constant supply of electricity, they are unbeatably cheap and, thanks to storage solutions, a promising pillar of the energy mix.

RE Royalties: Breaking new ground in dividend strategies

Analysts from consulting firms such as PwC point out that global economic growth is stagnating and investors are dependent on resilient business models. While established consumer goods stocks have laid the foundation for solid returns in the past, the royalty model in the green sector provides stability and returns. The correlation between cash flows from basic goods such as toilet paper and food, and the revenue-dependent earnings from solar and wind power is likely to be extremely low. Investors can benefit by combining classic dividend aristocrats with the above-average earnings potential of the global energy transition. RE Royalties shares could be the instrument of choice.