Here's a sobering statistic for investors to chew on: Almost 90% of the Fortune 500 companies from 1955 have gone bankrupt, merged, were acquired, or faded into obscurity and were removed from the prestigious list. Clearly, it's not easy to stay in the upper echelon of public companies.

That little factoid also offers up some proof that picking long-term winning investments isn't easy. It's probably why consistent, stable, high-yielding dividend stocks are such valuable finds for most investors. These are stocks you want to hold onto.

Stanley Black & Decker (NYSE: SWK) and Realty Income (NYSE: O) are two high-yield dividend options that are worth holding onto. Let's take a look at why you should feel safe holding them for years.

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Source Fool.com