For the past 14 months, both everyday and professional investors have been navigating a challenging environment on Wall Street. Last year, all three major U.S. stock indexes delivered their worst performances since 2008.

But when things become challenging on Wall Street, smart investors usually turn to dividend stocks. Companies that pay a regular dividend to their shareholders are often profitable, time-tested, and have transparent long-term growth outlooks. It also doesn't hurt that dividend stocks have historically outperformed publicly traded companies that don't offer a dividend by a significant margin over the long run.

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Source Fool.com