Please try a new searchBelow, we've compiled a list of three dividend stocks that can be relied upon to provide consistent and growing income.Their dividend yields are admittedly low right now, as their share prices have risen over the past year, but each is a high-quality, low-risk name fit for a conservative retirement portfolio.Home improvement giant Home Depot (NYSE:HD ) has proven to be one of the best dividend growth stocks for equity investors.The retailer has seen strong growth since the outbreak of the pandemic, which prompted stay-at-home workers to spend more money to renovate their homes. Home Depot Weekly ChartThis trend is likely to continue as many companies look to a hybrid work model, allowing more workers to remain flexible and work from home at least part of the time.This, combined with low interest rates and the huge savings Americans have accumulated during the pandemic, point to home improvement stocks continuing to gain.The latest sign of this continued strength came last month when Atlanta-based HD released another strong earnings report.Comparable store sales, a key metric for retailers, rose 6.1% in the third quarter, well above analysts' median estimate of 1.5%.HD currently pays a $1.65 per share quarterly dividend, which has grown, on average, 22% each year for the past five years.That escalation is likely to continue.The company has a low, sustainable payout ratio of 43%, which leaves plenty of room for the retailer to distribute more cash to shareholders.Another American company that ticks all the boxes for investing in retirement is sportswear giant Nike (NYSE:NKE ).The average growth of its dividends in the last five years has been greater than 11%.With a low payout ratio of just under 30%, coupled with the stock's current earnings momentum, the Oregon-based consumer apparel and footwear giant clearly has much more room to grow its dividend. Nike weekly-chartThe stock currently pays a dividend of $0.305 per share on a quarterly basis, which, at the current share price of $172.29, translates to an annual dividend yield of just under 1%.This may sound slim to many dividend-conscious investors, but the percentage yield doesn't tell the full story of why this is a smart dividend play for buy-and-hold portfolios.The best dividend stocks are those whose payouts increase regularly with no negative surprises.Nike has increased its payout for 20 consecutive years, proving that the company has the ability to generate cash no matter what phase of the national or global economic cycle it finds itself in.In addition to stable dividends, Nike is constantly innovating to fuel the growth of its business lines.During the pandemic, when many major retailers were forced to suspend their dividends, Nike proved that its business could not only survive, but could quickly adapt to new market conditions.For example, the company pivoted to stronger online sales when its physical outlets globally were closed due to lockdowns.UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH), the world's largest health insurer, offers another strong avenue for equity investors.Backed by the company's strong cash generation, investors have reaped huge dividend increases over the past five years.The company pays a quarterly dividend of $1.45.Annually, that payment has increased more than 21% over the past five years. Weekly ChartIn addition to steady dividend increases, UNH stock has provided impressive capital growth since the outbreak of the pandemic.The shares, trading at record highs, have gained more than 65% over the past two years, helped by lower demand for elective health procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic.UnitedHealth, which operates a health insurance business and health care services unit Optum, is offering equity investors an option to maintain a reliable name in the health care sector, even as the business makes a lot of money. of cash each year.According to the company's latest guidance released last week, UnitedHealth expects to do $320 billion in sales in fiscal 2022, with cash flows from operations expected to range between $23 billion and $24 billion.For this year, UnitedHealth said revenue is expected to be "approximately $287 billion, with net earnings of $17.80 to $17.95 per share and adjusted net earnings of $18.75 to $18.90 per share."This article was written exclusively for Investing.com Over the past decade, dividends included, Oracle (NYSE:ORCL) stock has...Understanding the uses of financial derivatives is vitally important.In this note I am going to tell you what they are and why they can be very useful, especially for...The stock indices of the world's main financial center continue to fall and reached their lows in 2022, entering a new "bearish" market territory as...From Investing.com Spain we invite you to interact with other users and share with them your points of view and your doubts in relation to the market.However, in order for the debate to be as enriching as possible, please, we ask you to take into account the following criteria:How does the comments section work?All comments are published automatically as long as they do not violate any of the above rules.As soon as the system detects a possible "infraction", the comment is pending review, so it may take longer to appear on the screen (avoid duplicating comments).If the moderator detects that it is an inappropriate comment, he will proceed to eliminate it.If the user engages in such behavior, we will proceed to temporarily suspend your account and it will count as a first notice.If the behavior is repeated after the first notice, the account will be permanently suspended.Contact Technical Support with any questions that may arise.It is the only way of communication to deal with these issues.Are you sure you want to block %USER_NAME%?By doing so, neither you nor %USER_NAME% will be able to see each other's posts on Investing.com.%USER_NAME% has been successfully added to your blocked users listYou just unblocked this person;you have to wait 48 hours to be able to block it again.Tell us what you think of this comment