NGX SWOOT dividend stocks to invest in January 2026 

Nigeria’s stock market surged by over 51% YtD in 2025, with twenty-two SWOOT (Stocks Worth Over One Trillion) Naira companies recording an average share price YtD gain of 69%.

Among the SWOOTs; Presco, MTNN, International Breweries, Okomu Oil, Nigerian Breweries and Nestle recorded triple-digit share price growth

While this is impressive, the gains can only be realized when you sell your holdings, which means that these returns aren’t always accessible immediately.

This is where dividends come in.

Investors in equities earn returns through two main streams: capital gains and dividend income. Capital gains refer to the price difference between when you purchase a stock and when you sell it.

Dividend income, on the other hand, is the portion of a company’s profit that it shares with its shareholders.

Several SWOOT companies pay reliable dividends.  While companies like Dangote Cement and BUA Foods pay only final dividends, banks, Seplat, Okomu, and Presco pay interim and final dividends, with Seplat paying quarterly.

Okomu and Presco have already paid two interim dividends and are expected to pay a final dividend based on their 2025 full-year results.

What matters most is dividend yield; how much cash investors earn for every naira invested—alongside dividend size, growth, and payout sustainability.

A higher dividend yield indicates that you’re earning more in dividends for each N1 you invest.

That said, here are five dividend stocks to consider taking a position in this January, with the banking sector dominating in terms of yield.

Seplat Energy: (Dividend Yield – 4.63%) 

Seplat is one of the strongest income stocks on the NGX, backed by a solid quarterly dividend policy

Over the last five years, the company has maintained an average payout ratio of 49% while growing dividends by an impressive 68% annually.

In 2024, Seplat paid N263.27 per share across four quarters, alongside N158 billion in special dividends, reflecting a 78% payout.

For 2025, it has already paid three quarterly dividends totaling N251.85 per share.

Based on this trend, Seplat’s Q4 dividend is estimated at around N80 per share. With management targeting $1 billion in cumulative dividends by 2030, Seplat remains well-positioned for sustained income growth.

At the projected Q4 dividend, Seplat’s total 2025 payout would translate into a dividend yield of over 5 per cent, reinforcing its appeal as a high-income stock.

Dangote Cement: (Dividend yield – 4.93%) 

Dangote Cement has consistently paid dividends. In the last five years, it has increased its dividend by 17% every year with an average payout ratio of 98%.

For the first nine months of 2025, Dangote Cement reported a profit of N743.263 billion, 48% higher than 2024’s full-year profit.

Annualizing this figure gives an estimated full-year profit of N1.0 trillion for the 2025 financial year. Given its historical 98% payout ratio, the dividend for 2025 is expected to reach N58 per share.

Dangote Cement remains a solid choice for dividend-seeking investors, with both strong historical payouts and growth potential. Given the expected dividend this year, investors may earn up to 7% as dividend income.

Stanbic IBTC: (Dividend yield 5%) 

Stanbic earned N278.48 billion in the first nine months of 2025, already higher than the N225 billion it made in the whole of 2024.

Annualizing this, it puts 2025 profit in the N370–N380 billion range, assuming Q4 tracks the average of the first three quarters.

In 2024, Stanbic paid N5.00 per share (interim and final), a 34% increase, at a payout ratio of about 29%.

For 2025, it has paid an interim dividend of N2.5, higher than the N2 paid in 2024, which is about 14% of the nine-month profit

If it maintains a payout close to 2024, 35%, total dividends for 2025 would come in around N130-N133 billion, implying a final dividend of about N4.50 per share.

The stock had a strong run last year, rising by 74%, and it still paid investors about 5% of its share price in dividends.

With the higher dividend expected in 2025, investors buying at today’s prices could earn more than 6% a year in cash income.

Zenith Bank: (Dividend yield – 8.1%) 

Using Zenith Bank’s numbers, the dividend headroom for 2025 is good.

Zenith earned N764,204 billion in the first nine months of 2025, already 74% of its N1.03 trillion full-year profit for 2024.

In 2024, it paid N5.00 per share (interim and final), a 79% increase, at a payout ratio of about 22%. For 2025, it has only paid an interim dividend of N0.25, which absorbed just N10.26 billion, barely 3% of H1 profit.

If UBA maintains a payout close to 2024’s 22%, total dividends for 2025 would come in around N160–N180 billion, which implies a final dividend of roughly N3.8–N4.05 per share.

GTCO: (Dividend yield – 8.8%) 

GTCO has a strong dividend culture, growing dividends by about 30% annually over the past five years.

For 2024, GTCO paid a total dividend of N8.03 per share, amounting to about N263 billion; just 23% of the year’s profit.

For 2025, the bank has already paid an interim dividend of N1 per share, or N34.14 billion, 5% of its nine-month profit of N699.64 billion.

Full-year profit is expected to be around N900–N950 billion if current trends hold.

With its low payout ratio, GTCO is well positioned to pay a final dividend higher than last year’s N7.03. If payout moves closer to its five-year average of 38%, the final dividend could reach N9–N11, pushing total 2025 dividends to N10–N12 per share.

At a 2025 closing price of N90.70, that implies a forward yield of around 12%, making GTCO one of the most attractive dividend plays on the NGX.

UBA: (Dividend yield – 12%) 

Using UBA’s numbers, the dividend headroom for 2025 is encouraging.

UBA earned N537.53 billion in the first nine months of 2025, already close to its N766.57 billion full-year profit for 2024.

Annualizing this puts 2025 profit in the N750–N800 billion range.

In 2024, UBA paid N5.00 per share (interim and final), a 79% increase, at a payout ratio of about 22%.

For 2025, it has only paid an interim dividend of N0.25, which absorbed just N10.26 billion, barely 3% of H1 profit.

If UBA maintains a payout close to 2024’s 22%, total dividends for 2025 would come in around N160–N180 billion and the final dividend of roughly N3.8–N4.05 per share.

At current prices, that would preserve UBA’s double-digit dividend yield, reinforcing its position as one of the strongest income stocks on the NGX going into 2026.

Other SWOOT companies: 

• Okomu Oil: Dividend yield of 3.29% on the 2024 annual dividend of N36.  In 2024, it has already paid a total interim dividend of N40
•  Presco: Dividend yield of 2.9% on 20224 annual dividend of N42.  The company has already paid N30 interim dividends for the 2025 financial year.