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With several market-spooking budget battles looming in the U.S. Congress this fall, investors need a way to defend against what figures to be a volatile market.
In this case, that means going after the best tech dividend stocks.
It most certainly does not mean panicking and dumping your stocks when the markets tumble. That's a sure way to lose a lot of money.
But you still need to steel yourself against the bumpy ride that is almost surely heading our way.
Just yesterday (Monday) the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 128.57 points, or 0.84%, and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost 10.20 points, or 0.60%, on fears of the first U.S. government shutdown in 17 years.
And while the markets seem blasé about the government shutdown that started at midnight Monday, the next budget battle – over raising the debt ceiling – will get Wall Street's attention for sure.
If Congress doesn't raise the debt ceiling by Oct. 17, the United States could default on its debt, permanently damaging the nation's credit rating.
In times like these, says Money Morning Defense & Tech Specialist Michael A. Robinson, a few big, dependable tech dividend stocks can help investors weather the coming storm.
"There's a way to stay invested – to keep pursuing the life-changing profits that the 'right' tech-sector stocks can deliver – even as you muscle aside the painful gut punches that today's volatile markets can inflict," Robinson said.
The kind of tech dividend stocks we're looking for should be large so they can sustain short-term turbulence in the markets with minimal damage and cash-rich so they can afford to pay – and continue to raise – their dividend.
With $1.7 trillion on corporate balance sheets, Robinson said those who hold dividend stocks figure to see increasing payouts.
And successful investors know that dividend-paying stocks are a smart strategy regardless of other factors.
For instance, a study by Ned Davis Research earlier this year found that, over a period from 1972 through September 2012, dividend-paying stocks provided a return nearly 16 times higher than stocks that did not pay a dividend.
So let's take a look at what Robinson considers the best tech dividend stocks to buy now…