Past performance cant be use as future performance you have to check fundamental of companies also
As HCL INFO is a good dividend paying company but now involve in Commonwealth scam case and CBI raids happened on there office IF something came it can go to HELL alread 60% down in two mnths:thumb:
Dividend Yield Alone should not be a criteria for picking stocks. You should also look at Growth Prospects along With Dividend Growth. Then only you can have Both Capital Appreciation as well as Regular Dividend Income.
Also Look for Companies having relatively low P/E ratio and High Dividend Yield for having a Margin of Safety.
Example.
Maharashtra Scooters has been paying dividend continuously for more than 18 years . But the chances of capital appreciations are bleak since the company doesn't have a growth strategy.
Here's a List of Stocks having Good Dividend Yield from CNX 500 .
Some companies like Patni and Merck are unlikely to repeat the huge dividend they have given last year. Moneycontrol has a section about dividend yield stocks