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The past doesn't predict the future. But if a company has been paying dividends for a long time, that can give investors confidence in its ability to continue doing so. It demonstrates that the company can weather a lot of adversity and innovate and launch new products to meet changing demand. Those are key characteristics investors will want to see when considering long-term investments.

Three stocks that have not only been around for a century but have also been paying dividends for that long are Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY), and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT). Here's why these can be some of the safest stocks you can add to your portfolio today.

1. Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola has an iconic brand that's known all around the world. It's a top Warren Buffett holding, and a big reason for that is its strong brand power. Its products are found in millions of households, across hundreds of countries. While the company is known for its Coke products, it has evolved over the years and now has more than 200 brands, branching out beyond just soft drinks and into coffee, tea, and water.

The company has created no-sugar products to meet changing customer demand, and it has also expanded via acquisitions. Coca-Cola may not be the growth machine it once was, but it's still a reliable business to invest in. It has generated $10.4 billion in profit over the past four quarters on sales of $46.4 billion, for a profit margin of 22%.

Coca-Cola has paid a dividend going back to 1893. Today, it's part of an exclusive club of Dividend Kings, which have increased their dividend payments for more than 50 straight years. Its dividend yields 3%, and if your priority is to generate a safe and recurring dividend, Coca-Cola may be an ideal stock to put into your portfolio right now.

2. Eli Lilly

Eli Lilly is a hot growth stock to buy, as investors are bullish on its prospects in the weight loss market. The company has an incredibly promising product in tirzepatide, which regulators have approved for diabetes treatment (Mounjaro) and weight loss (Zepbound). At its peak, tirzepatide may be the best-selling drug ever, with some analysts projecting that its annual revenue will eventually top more than $50 billion.

To put into perspective just how massive that is, consider that Eli Lilly generated $34 billion in sales last year -- from all of its products. With so much excitement surrounding Eli Lilly's potential, it's little wonder that the healthcare stock has risen by more than 200% in just the past three years.

But that's just part of the equation for investors, as Eli Lilly is also a fantastic dividend stock to own. It has been making dividend payments to its shareholders since 1885. While the stock's yield looks unimpressive at just 0.6%, it would have been even lower if not for its generous increases in recent years -- the company has doubled its dividend since 2019. In November 2021, the stock was trading at around $250. At that price point, the current dividend would yield 2.1% and be higher than the S&P 500 average of 1.2%. However, investors would probably much rather have the stock's incredible gains over the past few years instead.

Given Eli Lilly's fantastic growth prospects plus its growing dividend, this is another great income stock you can buy and hold for years.

3. Abbott Laboratories

Rounding out this list of top income stocks is Abbott Laboratories. What's great about this stock is the diversity that it offers investors. Abbott is a testing company, a pharma business, and a medical device maker, all rolled into one. It also generates a significant portion of its revenue from nutritional products, including its leading brand, Ensure.

That diversification gives Abbott plenty of ways to grow, diversify, and adapt to changing market conditions. When there was a big need for testing when concerns about COVID were rampant, that area of its business was soaring. When its nutritional segment struggled due to a recall of baby formula products, the company was able to weather the storm. Over the past nine months, it has reported positive growth in all of its segments besides diagnostics, which are down against stronger comparable numbers from a year ago due to COVID testing sales.

Abbott is experiencing some excellent growth in its medical device segment. Demand for its continuous glucose monitors (which help people with diabetes stay on top of their glucose levels) is particularly strong. For the period ending Sept. 30, those products brought in $1.6 billion in revenue, which increased at a rate of more than 19% year over year.

The company has been paying a dividend since 1924, and like Coca-Cola, it is a Dividend King. Abbott's strong diversification and modest payout ratio of 66% make it highly probable that there will be more dividend hikes in store for investors who buy and hold the stock.

Should you invest $1,000 in Eli Lilly right now?

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David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Abbott Laboratories. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.