Top Wall Street analysts are bullish on these dividend stocks

With the Federal Reserve now on a rate-cutting campaign, dividend stocks may soon get their moment in the spotlight.

Investors looking for lucrative dividend-paying stocks can track the recommendations of top analysts, who consider various aspects like a company's fundamentals and consistency in dividend payments before selecting a stock.

Here are three dividend-paying stocks, highlighted by Wall Street's top pros on TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.

This week's first dividend pick is oil and gas giant Exxon Mobil (XOM). The company recently announced better-than-anticipated third-quarter results, driven by a solid rise in production. It is worth noting that the company achieved its highest liquids production in over 40 years with 3.2 million barrels per day.

The dividend aristocrat returned $9.8 billion to shareholders in the third quarter. Moreover, the company increased its quarterly dividend by 4% to 99 cents per share. With this hike, Exxon has increased its dividends for 42 consecutive years. XOM stock offers a forward dividend yield of 3.3%.

Following the Q3 print, Evercore analyst Stephen Richardson reiterated a buy rating on Exxon stock with a price target of $135. The analyst noted that the company's strategy to invest through the cycle trough and boost spending on major projects and acquisitions like that of Pioneer Natural Resources boosted the prospects of its Upstream business.

"The benefit of incremental investments and perhaps more importantly the high grading of the asset base has put XOM on a different competitive footing vs. the industry but also vs. its own historical results," said Richardson.

The analyst noted that the company's cash flow from operations, excluding