International stocks are having a strong year compared to the S & P 500 — and a few of those global names also happen to offer attractive dividends. The broad market S & P 500 is up just 2% in 2025, which pales in comparison to the double-digit surges the benchmark saw in 2023 and 2024. Uncertainty over tariff policy, shakiness on the path of interest rates — and now the U.S.’ involvement in attacks in the Middle East — have sent stocks on a roller-coaster ride. After the S & P 500’s big two-year run, it only makes sense that U.S. investors might want to rethink their international exposure to diversify away from overallocations in Big Tech and U.S. names. “If you looked at international last year, it might’ve underperformed but this year, international has been a star,” said Marguerita Cheng, certified financial planner and CEO of Blue Ocean Global Wealth in Gaithersburg, Maryland. .SPX VEU YTD mountain S & P 500 vs. the Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US ETF (VEU) in 2025 Indeed, the Vanguard FTSE All-World ex-US ETF (VEU) saw a return of roughly 5.5% in 2024, but it is now up 14% this year. To get some international exposure, particularly for dividend-seeking investors, she has turned to offerings such as the First Trust Target Global Dividend Leaders Portfolio. The strategy in this unit investment trust offers a combination of domestic and international equity names, as well as real estate investment trusts. CNBC Pro scanned through the constituents of that portfolio to find international names that offer dividends. Here are a few of the names that are rated buy or overweight by more than 50% of the analysts covering them, and they have upside of more than 20%, based on FactSet consensus price targets. Panamanian airline company Copa Holdings emerged on the list. U.S.-traded shares are up more than 16% in 2025, and the stock pays a dividend yield of about 6.3%. More than 9 out of 10 analysts covering the name deem it a buy or overweight, and consensus price targets call for more than 50% upside, per FactSet. Raymond James analyst Savanthi Syth reiterated a strong buy rating on Copa in May, noting that the airline delivered “Best In Class 1Q25 Results.” The company posted earnings of $4.28 per share on revenue of $899.2 million for the period, topping FactSet consensus estimates of $3.94 per share and revenue of $888.6 million. “Copa noted healthy booking trends with no material change in recent weeks, although visibility is limited to 2-3 months out,” Syth wrote. “Demand in North America and the Caribbean appears stable, while Mexico and Central America face headwinds from elevated competitive capacity, notably from Avianca.” The analyst’s price target of $145 calls for upside of more than 41% from Friday’s close. Vale , the Brazilian mining company, is another name that has caught Wall Street’s attention. The stock is rated buy or overweight by nearly 60% of the analysts covering it. Consensus price targets call for 32% upside from current levels, per FactSet. In April, Bank of America upgraded the stock to buy from neutral, with analyst Caio Ribeiro saying the “bottom-up story has improved significantly.” That is due in part to the conclusion of a railway dispute and a new management team that includes Gustavo Pimenta as CEO and Marcelo Bacci as chief financial officer. “Vale’s discounted valuation combined with its improved bottom-up story offer enough margin of safety to accommodate our more cautious iron ore view,” Ribeiro said, giving the stock a price target of $11.50. That represents nearly 27% upside from Friday’s close. U.S.-traded shares of Vale are up 3% in 2025, and the stock pays a dividend yield of 9.1%. Latam Airlines Group of Chile also made the list. Shares are up 37% in 2025, and the stock pays a dividend yield of 2.7%. Consensus price targets call for 23.2% upside from current levels, per FactSet. Morgan Stanley is overweight on the stock, and analyst Jens Spiess said in a June 10 note that traffic for the airline is up 9.8% quarter to date, topping consensus estimates. “Schedules point to capacity increasing ~11% in June, implying capacity growth of ~8-9% for the full quarter, slightly above consensus (+6.8% Y/Y) and [Morgan Stanley’s estimates of] (+7.6%).” — CNBC’s Nick Wells and Michael Bloom contributed reporting.
