Is HDV or VAR a better dividend investment in 2026?

HDV currently yields 2.92% with a 4.8% 5-year dividend growth rate. VAR yields 4.00% with 5% growth. The better choice depends on your goal: VAR offers higher current income.

What is the dividend yield difference between HDV and VAR?

HDV has a forward dividend yield of 2.92% ($3.96/share annually). VAR yields 4.00% ($2.00/share annually). The yield gap is 1.08 percentage points.

Home › Compare › HDV vs VAR

HDV vs VAR: Dividend Comparison 2026

HDV yields 2.92% · VAR yields 4.00%● Live data

vsPost on X →

After 10 years · $10,000 invested · DRIP enabled

🏆 VAR wins by $3.7K in total portfolio value

INVESTMENT

TIME HORIZON10 years

HDV

iShares Core High Dividend ETF

● Live price

2.92%

Share price

$135.39

Annual div

$3.96

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$24.3K

Annual income

$352.73

Full HDV calculator →

VAR

● Live price

4.00%

Share price

$50.00

Annual div

$2.00

5Y div CAGR

Payout ratio

50%

After 10 yrs · $10,000 · DRIP

Portfolio value

$28.0K

Annual income

$899.19

Full VAR calculator →

Portfolio growth — HDV vs VAR

📍 VAR pulled ahead of the other in Year 1

Annual dividend income

🛡️

Recession Test — Did They Cut Dividends?

How each stock treated shareholders during the 3 biggest crises of the last 20 years

Crisis Period	HDV	VAR
2008–2009 GFC	— No data	— No data
2020 Q1–Q2 COVID	— No data	— No data
2022 Q4 Rate Hike	— No data	— No data

Based on dividend payment history. "Increased" = dividend grew during crisis. "Maintained" = held within 3%. "Cut" = reduced by more than 3%.

📅

Dividend Calendar Overlap

Combined, HDV + VAR cover 0 of 12 months — good coverage

Jan

—

Feb

—

Mar

—

Apr

—

May

—

Jun

—

Jul

—

Aug

—

Sep

—

Oct

—

Nov

—

Dec

—

HDV pays

VAR pays

Both pay

Neither

💰

Tax Bracket Optimizer

Which stock is actually better after tax? Adjust your rate to find out.

HDV

Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)

$248.52/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$299.82/yr

VAR

Annual income on $10K today (after 15% tax)

$340.00/yr

After 10yr DRIP, annual income (after tax)

$764.31/yr

At 15% tax rate, VAR beats the other by $464.49/year in after-tax income after 10 years on $10,000

⚖️

Lazy Portfolio Split Optimizer

What's the optimal mix of HDV + VAR for your $10,000?

HDV: 50%VAR: 50%

100% VAR50/50100% HDV

Portfolio after 10yr

$26.2K

Annual income

$625.96/yr

Blended yield

2.39%

📊

Analyst Conviction Gap

Where Wall Street is most bullish on VAR right now

HDV

No analyst data

VAR

Analyst Ratings

Buy

Hold

Sell

Consensus: Hold

Analyst ratings via FMP. Altman Z-Score: >3.0 safe, 1.81–3.0 grey zone, <1.81 distress. Piotroski: 7–9 strong, 0–3 weak.

🏛️

Copy Congress — What Are Politicians Buying?

Senate & House STOCK Act disclosures (last 90 days)

HDV buys

VAR buys

No recent congressional trades found for HDV or VAR in the last 90 days.

STOCK Act mandates disclosure within 45 days of transaction. Data via FMP.Full tracker →

MetricHDVVAR

Forward yield	2.92%	4.00% ✓
Annual dividend / share	$3.96 ✓	$2.00
Payout ratio	50%	50%
1-year div growth	0%	5% ✓
5-year div CAGR	0%	5% ✓
Portfolio after 10y	$24.3K	$28.0K ✓
Annual income after 10y	$352.73	$899.19 ✓
Total dividends collected	$3.2K	$6.4K ✓
Payment frequency	quarterly	quarterly
Sector	ETF	Stock

Year-by-year: HDV vs VAR ($10,000, DRIP)

Year	HDV Portfolio	HDV Income/yr	VAR Portfolio	VAR Income/yr	Gap
1← crossover	$11,002	$292.38	$11,120	$420.00	$118.00 → VAR
2	$12,084	$300.36	$12,357	$458.31	$273.00 → VAR
3	$13,250	$308.02	$13,721	$499.76	$471.00 → VAR
4	$14,506	$315.35	$15,227	$544.58	$721.00 → VAR
5	$15,858	$322.35	$16,885	$593.02	$1.0K → VAR
6	$17,313	$329.04	$18,713	$645.34	$1.4K → VAR
7	$18,878	$335.42	$20,724	$701.81	$1.8K → VAR
8	$20,560	$341.49	$22,938	$762.73	$2.4K → VAR
9	$22,367	$347.25	$25,372	$828.41	$3.0K → VAR
10	$24,307	$352.73	$28,047	$899.19	$3.7K → VAR

HDV vs VAR: Complete Analysis 2026

HDV — ETF

The iShares Core High Dividend ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of relatively high dividend paying U.S. equities.

Full HDV Calculator →

VAR — Stock

VAR is a dividend-paying stock. Use this calculator to estimate your future dividend income, DRIP compounding returns, and passive income potential from investing in VAR shares.

Full VAR Calculator →

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⚠️ Educational purposes only. Not financial advice. Congressional trades sourced from SEC STOCK Act filings via FMP. Past performance does not guarantee future results.