Are you looking for quality dividend stocks to hold in your portfolio? You may be tempted to look at financial stocks, defensive stocks, or simply businesses that are more closely associated with safety rather than growth potential. But growth stocks can make for potentially underrated income investments, especially in tech.

According to the most recent issue of the Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index, the top two Dividend payers, in terms of actual cash paid out last year, were Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL). Although they don't offer the highest yields, these companies have been paying a ton in dividends. And in the long run, they could become great dividend growth stocks.

Tech giant Microsoft paid out the most in dividends last year, with a generous $20.7 billion paid out to its shareholders over its most recent four quarters. The company has routinely been on the list of the top dividend payers, and it has occupied one of the top three spots in each of the past four years.

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Source Fool.com