3 Dividend Growth Stocks Analysts Are Upgrading for 2026

A single analyst's rating and price target, the consensus rating and price target, for that matter, have little value to investors without the proper context. The context is the sentiment strength and trend, which for stocks like PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP), AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV), and United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS), is strong and bullish.

The sentiment strength is reflected in the number of analysts covering and the level of recent activity; the trend is the direction of revisions, either higher or lower, and in whether they are leading the market with an increasing or declining consensus price target. This article examines the sentiment trends for the aforementioned stocks and their (bullish) implications for investors in 2026. 

PepsiCo Analysts Highlight a Deep-Value/High-Yield Opportunity

PepsiCo, like other consumer staples stocks, has struggled in recent years. The impacts of recalls, compounded by macroeconomic headwinds and consumer shifts, resulted in tepid growth and lackluster stock performance, but those days are behind it. The market has priced in the worst; improvements are taking hold, and analysts' sentiment trends shifted back into an accumulative posture late in 2025. 

MarketBeat tracks 15 Q4 revisions as of mid-December, including numerous price target increases and several upgrades. The consensus rating is a Hold, but the bias is bullish, with coverage up year-over-year, upgrades in the mix, and eight of the 22 total ratings pegged at Buy. The consensus price target, up from its mid-year low, forecasts a 5% upside from the critical resistance point. Regarding the value, PepsiCo’s P/E has run closer to 25x earnings on average, suggesting a significantly larger upside is possible. Long-term forecasts put PEP stock at approximately 15x its 2030 earnings, implying as much as 50% upside. 

The analysts' shift highlights the value and yield opportunities, with PepsiCo trading near the low end of its historic P/E range and the dividend yield at 3.75%, near the high end of its range. Technically, the stock price retreated to a long-term uptrend line in 2025, triggering a trend-following signal indicating steadily increasing price action in 2026. 

AbbVie Uptrend Is Healthy and Intact

AbbVie’s analysts' activity reveals that its Q4 price pullback is setting up a buying opportunity. MarketBeat tracked more than a dozen revisions from among 25 analysts, including a few downgrades, but the upgrades and price target increases offset them, keeping the uptrend intact. The two downgrades are to Hold and are accompanied by consensus-affirming price targets; the remainder of the activity is reaffirmed bullish ratings and price targets, price target increases, and two upgrades to Buy. 

The takeaway is that ABBV’s coverage is strong and steady, and sentiment is firm, with a rising price target, despite some mixed sentiment. Consensus forecasts a 10% upside, sufficient for a fresh all-time high, and the business trend suggests it will continue to move higher. 

AbbVie’s driving factor is its move away from Humira. Once dependent on it for revenue, AbbVie now has a solid portfolio of fresh blockbusters, a well-diversified product portfolio, and a healthy pipeline to ensure future results. The dividend yields an annualized 3.08% in December and is of Dividend King quality due to its healthy balance sheet and history with Abbott Laboratories.

United Parcel Service: High Yield With Limited Downside

United Parcel Service stock is not without risks, but analysts' sentiment trends limit the downside. MarketBeat data reveals eight revisions from 30 analysts following its Q3 release, providing ample coverage and reasonable conviction in the sentiment shift.

All affirm the consensus target, forecasting a 10% upside from critical support, with six price targets increased and one upgrade. The consensus is Hold, but the bias is now bullish, and the price target trend is leading to an above-consensus price point. A move to $110 is sufficient to trigger a technical reversal in this market. 

The price action is favorable for this 6.5% yielding stock. The market hit a bottom in Q4 and rebounded, regaining support at the cluster of moving averages. This is a critical level that reveals buying among near-term and short-term traders and long-term investors, suggesting that market forces are synchronizing. In this scenario, UPS stock could confirm its reversal within weeks and then continue higher in 2026.

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The article "3 Dividend Growth Stocks Analysts Are Upgrading for 2026" first appeared on MarketBeat.