Why should one buy best companies with high dividends?

The following was what I wrote on April 3, when the market was up and running like everything was beautiful:


       ......But the stock market simply ignores all of them (the risks) and is roaring straightly up and up, no stops. I like the metaphor to say that the market is firing on steroids. Those who know medicine can understand that patients with severe infections may still feel very good if they are given steroids but this is only a temporary effect. Fundamentally the steroid effect is only making the situation worse and the patient will suffer more due to the worsening condition without feeling it. Honestly I become more scared than half year ago to see this kind of euphoria in the market. The market is clearly irrational to me!

By now everything is history and those we were complacent and simply following the herds are likely suffering painfully now. Although I did not like the whole stock market, I did recommended a few good companies that I considered the best in their respective industry. Their stable and high dividend yields were among the keys for me to be interested in them. I figured that their solid business with high dividends should make them perform relatively well even in the bear market.See the few examples below. The S&P 500 index has declined about 13% in the past 6 months (by Friday, Sep 23). But these great companies are either at even or have significantly appreciated in the same period of time: MSFT (no change), WMT: -5%, MCD: +18%, and JNJ: +5%. You can also add Intel (INTC), which was up +10%.  Adding their dividends, they are even doing much better.

Hope you understand better why you should buy the best companies with stable dividends. They can really defy poor markets and deliver good income at the same time. This is what you need to build in for your retirement portfolio so that you can sleep well at night.