Todd Trubey: Hi. I’m Todd Trubey, a senior manager research analyst with Morningstar.
If you’re a US investor with a domestic dividend fund, you might think the yield looks pretty weak lately. Well, there’s some good news and bad news. The good news is that equity income as a group recently had a 2.1% yield, which isn’t that much lower than their long-term average of 2.3%. The bad news is that 2.3% just isn’t that good. So, how do you get higher equity income? One way you can get more income from equities is if you look abroad, because non-US stocks often pay higher dividends. Today, I will highlight three Silver-rated funds that have good yields coming from foreign stocks.
One quick note: International dividends can face double taxation abroad and at home, although tax agreements with other nations, as well as the US foreign tax credit, often reduce the bill.
3 Dividend Funds With Foreign Flair
- Vanguard International High Dividend Yield Index ETF VYMI
- DFA International Small Cap Value DISVX
- Lazard Global Listed Infrastructure GLIFX
The first fund is Silver-rated Vanguard International High Dividend Yield Index ETF, ticker VYMI, recently had a yield of 4.2%. This is an index fund from Vanguard, so it’s quite cheap and well-diversified, recently holding more than 1,650 stocks. Its since-inception annualized return through July 2025 was 9.5%, which ranks just outside the top quartile in its foreign large-value Morningstar Category.
Next, there’s Silver-rated DFA International Small Cap Value, ticker DISVX. It’s another broadly diversified foreign equity fund with low fees. It’s a bit more off the beaten path in the small and mid-value universe, so it likely provides more diversification to your overall portfolio. Recently, its 12-month yield was 3.7%. Now international small caps have lagged the last decade, but in the first seven months of 2025, it jumped 28.1% when the S&P 500 only gained 8.6%.
Turning to more specialty players, there’s silver-rated Lazard Global Listed Infrastructure, ticker GLIFX. Recently, its 12-month yield was 2.7%. It retains the foreign flavor, but with a 30-stock portfolio that focuses on sectors known especially for dividends. That is, nearly 55% of the portfolio is held in utilities, with another 33% in industrials. Its 10-year return of 9.5% was tops in the infrastructure category as of July 2025.
Watch 4 Must-Own Dividend-Growth Stocks for more on dividend investing.