This Company Has Paid a Monthly Dividend Without Cutting It for 18 Years
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By James Brumley – Apr 24, 2026 at 4:00PM ESTKey PointsAlthough somewhat rare, a handful of companies pay dividends monthly.A smaller handful of these outfits also boast a solid track record of payment, as well as payment growth.Unlike many others of its kind, this stock also delivers persistent capital appreciation.Do you need reliable monthly investment income to help cover your ongoing living expenses? Your options are limited, but there are some out there. An outfit called Main Street Capital (MAIN +0.07%) is one of them. Here's what you need to know. What's Main Street Capital? It's not a conventional company because it doesn't make products or provide a revenue-bearing service. Rather, Main Street Capital is a business development company (BDC). That just means it provides capital to businesses that can put it to constructive use. Usually, this money is provided as an interest-bearing loan, though Main Street will occasionally take an equity stake. Propane company Flame King, Jensen Jewelers, and Rug Doctor are just some of the businesses in Main Street Capital's portfolio. Image source: Getty Images. It's a somewhat unusual business model, although not as unusual as you might think. Ares Capital, Apollo Investment Corp. (now called MidCap Financial Investment Corp.), and Hercules Capital are all also in the business. Even by dividend-paying BDC standards, though, Main Street Capital is somewhat unusual in that it pays its ordinary dividends on a monthly rather than quarterly basis, with a supplemental dividend dished out every quarter to reflect any profits above and beyond income that supports its regular dividend. While the latter can and does vary somewhat, the former is not only consistently paid, but it also consistently rises. The company's ordinary monthly dividend has grown from $0.125 per share as of 2010, in fact, to $0.26 per share now. ExpandNYSE: MAINMain Street CapitalToday's Change(0.07%) $0.04Current Price$54.06Key Data PointsMarket Cap$4.9BDay's Range$53.97 - $54.5052wk Range$50.42 - $66.76Volume358KAvg Vol783KGross Margin100.00%Dividend Yield6.17% Just as impressive, however, is that Main Street Capital's share price has advanced from its late-2008 post-IPO low of less than $10 to more than $54 per share, demonstrating investors can get solid income and decent capital appreciation from a single holding. Not for everyone, but suitable for most It's still not for everyone. This stock ebbs and flows quite a bit with the ever-changing cost of capital, or interest rates. Investors may not need or want a holding that splits the duties of growth and income. Then there's the fact that interest in the private credit model is waning, thanks to too many loan defaults from borrowers previously believed to be more durable. Indeed, the aforementioned MidCap and Ares both recently restricted investors' redemptions of their stakes to curb destabilizing liquidations.
If Main Street Capital's funding dries up and it can't lend more money, it can't grow its business, revenue, earnings, or its dividend payments. On balance, however, Main Street Capital remains one of the healthier and better-managed business development companies, and it is likely to sidestep such pitfalls. One big reason for this is simply that -- unlike many others of its ilk -- this BDC is internally managed, meaning it intimately knows its portfolio companies before and after funding them. This structure also simplifies operations and lowers net operating costs. Either way, newcomers will be plugging into Main Street Capital at a forward-looking yield of just under 6%. That's above-average recurring income from a holding capable of decent capital appreciation with only a modest degree of risk.Read NextApr 13, 2026 •By Jason Hall7 Best Monthly Dividend Stocks for April 2026Apr 3, 2026 •By Matt DiLallo20 Best High-Yield Dividend Stocks to Buy in 2026Apr 3, 2026 •By Dave KovaleskiThis High-Yield Dividend Stock Has Raised Its Payout for Over a DecadeMar 31, 2026 •By Catherine BrockWho Owns Ford? Largest Shareholders & Board of DirectorsApr 24, 2026 •By Parkev Tatevosian, CFAShould You Buy Robinhood Stock Before the Huge Investor Update?Apr 24, 2026 •By Leo SunWarren Buffett Quietly Sold 75% of His Biggest Holding.
This Is Where the Money Went.About the AuthorJames Brumley is a contributing Motley Fool stock market analyst covering consumer staples and consumer discretionary stocks. James is a former licensed stockbroker with Charles Schwab, and a registered investment adviser. He holds a bachelor’s degree in business management with a specialization in finance from Transylvania University.TMFjbrumleyX@jbrumleyStocks MentionedMain Street CapitalNYSE: MAIN$54.06(+0.07%)+$0.04*Average returns of all recommendations since inception. Cost basis and return based on previous market day close.