There are plenty of dividend stocks on the market. However, some raise their payouts irregularly, while others don't have businesses that look robust enough to support payout growth for a long time. Ideally, income-seeking investors want to avoid these situations. They prefer dividend-paying companies that can afford to raise their payouts regularly and aren't at risk of reducing or suspending their dividend programs.

Let's look at one stock that can give income-seekers precisely what they want: Swiss pharma giant (NYSE: NVS).

Novartis is one of the largest drugmakers in the world, with a deep lineup of medicines, many of which make over $1 billion per year. Of the 13 blockbusters it had in its portfolio last year, 10 grew their sales year over year.

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Source Fool.com