Coca-Cola Europacific Partners: A Hidden Gem with a Safe Dividend Yield

The Nasdaq-100 index is known for its low-yielding stocks, but one company stands out as a potential dividend star. Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) is the world's largest independent bottler of Coca-Cola products, and despite being an international firm, it has a solid track record of growth and a safe dividend payout.

The company has been paying dividends for a decade and has a dividend yield of about 2%, which is more than quadruple that of the Nasdaq-100. Its payout ratio is just 34%, implying there's room for growth, and it's considered extremely safe.

Coca-Cola Europacific Partners is a dedicated buyer of its own shares, which lifts earnings per share (EPS) while decreasing the number of shares on which dividends must be paid. The company has also been reducing its debt, with net debt-to-earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) expected to decline to 2x next year and 1x in 2030.