Altria (NYSE: MO) has long been regarded as a top dividend stock and it's easy to see why.

The domestic Marlboro maker has raised its quarterly dividends 57 times over the last 53 years, making it a Dividend King. Because of its payout-hiking track record, Altria was the best stock to own for a nearly 50-year period from 1968 to 2015, if you had reinvested the dividends.

While the stock has underperformed since peaking in 2017, declining over a three-year period from 2017-2020, that was primarily due to a stretched valuation, a brief pause in profit growth, and investments in JUUL and Cronos Group that have gone sour. Despite its weak performance during that time, operating income has continued to march higher as the chart below shows, a sign the underlying business remains solid.

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Source Fool.com