4 Reasons to Avoid Dividend-Paying Stocks

Do you like the idea of seeing real cash added to your portfolio on a regular basis? Even for growth-minded investors, it can be thrilling to see dividend payments deposited into a brokerage or retirement account every now and then. After all, they're payments that can't be clawed back, and they don't require the market-wide tailwinds typically needed to drive non-dividend-paying stocks higher.

Popular dividend-paying stocks like Chevron and AT&T (NYSE: T) aren't necessarily all they're often made out to be, however. There are plenty of good reasons you wouldn't want to own them. Here's a closer look at four big reasons to avoid dividend-paying stocks.

Just like the wages employees earn when they're working, dividend payments may be taxable income. Indeed, in many cases -- with dividends categorized as "ordinary" dividends -- they're taxed just like income.

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Source Fool.com