If you're an income-minded investor, there's certainly no shortage of compelling opportunities right now. Rising interest rates have not only led to higher bond yields but also to higher dividend yields among stocks.

Before plowing into the S 500's (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) highest-yielding dividend payers simply because they're boasting the biggest payouts at this time, however, you might want to reconsider. Although you will drive more immediate income with these particular tickers, the strategy itself requires an important footnote.

The five highest-yielding dividend stocks within the S 500 right now are Pioneer Natural Resources (NYSE: PXD), Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN), Altria Group (NYSE: MO), Coterra Energy (NYSE: CTRA), and Verizon (NYSE: VZ). Honorable mentions go to AT (NYSE: T) and KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY). You could own any five of these seven stocks and still be doing about as well as you would with any other five out of the seven in question.

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Source Fool.com