Forget AGNC Investment, Buy This Magnificent Dividend Stock Instead

It is hard to pass up a big yield, but sometimes an ultra-high dividend yield is a sign of risk. That's the case with AGNC Investment (NASDAQ: AGNC), which is offering a massive 15% yield. You would be much better off lowering your yield expectations and buying out-of-favor Realty Income (NYSE: O). Its 5.9% yield isn't nearly as enticing, but you can actually count on it. Here's why you should forget about AGNC and buy Realty Income instead.

There's that old saying that a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, in the case of AGNC Investment, that picture is actually a graph, which you'll see below. To summarize the image in as few words as possible, the dividend is highly variable and has headed steadily lower for at least a decade. The stock price has followed along for the ride, trending lower and lower as well.