George Soros' Top 5 Dividend Stock Picks for 2015

At Stockpickr, we track the top holdings of a variety of high-profile investors, such as Warren Buffett and Carl Icahn.

One of our most popular professional portfolios is that of George Soros' Soros Fund Management. The fund conducts a large number of transactions each quarter -- in the most recent quarter, it bought 80 new stocks and increased its position in 114. Today, we're highlighting some of its top dividend stock picks.

Must Read: Warren Buffett's Top 10 Dividend Stocks

What follows is a closer look at five of Soros' top 30 stocks. They all comprise at least 1.9% of Soros' portfolio as of the most recently reported quarter ended March 31 and have dividend yields of at least 2.3%. They are ordered here by yield.

5. Motorola Solutions

Motorola Solutions (MSI - Get Report) has a current yield of 2.3%, paying a quarterly dividend of 34 cents a share.

Motorola Solutions comprised 1.9% of Soros Fund Management's portfolio as of March 31. In the most recently reported quarter, Soros increased his stake in the stock by 83.5% to 2.5 million shares.

TheStreet Ratings team rates Motorola Solutions as a hold with a ratings score of C. TheStreet Ratings team has this to say about its recommendation:

"We rate Motorola Solutions (MSI) a hold. The primary factors that have impacted our rating are mixed -- some indicating strength, some showing weaknesses, with little evidence to justify the expectation of either a positive or negative performance for this stock relative to most other stocks. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its good cash flow from operations, growth in earnings per share and expanding profit margins. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including unimpressive growth in net income, disappointing return on equity and a generally disappointing performance in the stock itself."

4. LyondellBasell Industries

LyondellBasell Industries (LYB - Get Report) has a current yield of 3%, paying a quarterly dividend of 78 cents a share.

LyondellBasell comprised 2% of Soros' portfolio as of March 31. In the most recently reported quarter, Soros Fund management decreased its stake in the stock by 26.5% to 2.1 million shares.

TheStreet Ratings team rates LyondellBasell Industries as a buy with a ratings score of A-. TheStreet Ratings team has this to say about its recommendation:

"We rate LyondellBasell Industries (LYB) a buy. This is based on the convergence of positive investment measures, which should help this stock outperform the majority of stocks that we rate. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its impressive record of earnings per share growth, increase in net income, notable return on equity, attractive valuation levels and good cash flow from operations. We feel its strengths outweigh the fact that the company shows low profit margins."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings team include:

LyondellBasell Industries has improved earnings per share by 40.7% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past two years. We feel that this trend should continue. During the past fiscal year, LyondellBasell Industries increased its bottom line by earning $7.97 versus $6.78 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($9.30 versus $7.97).
The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Chemicals industry. The net income increased by 23.4% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, going from $945.00 million to $1,166.00 million.
The company's current return on equity greatly increased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of significant strength within the corporation. Compared to other companies in the Chemicals industry and the overall market, LyondellBasell Industries' return on equity significantly exceeds that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
Net operating cash flow has significantly increased by 83.27% to $1,468.00 million when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, LyondellBasell Industries has also vastly surpassed the industry average cash flow growth rate of 15.79%.

You can view the full analysis from the report here: LYB Ratings Report

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings team include:

Net operating cash flow has significantly increased by 228.26% to $151.00 million when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, Motorola Solutions has also vastly surpassed the industry average cash flow growth rate of -72.79%.
Motorola Solutions has improved earnings per share by 21.2% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, Motorola Solutions swung to a loss, reporting -$3.12 versus $3.47 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($3.31 versus -$3.12).
MSI, with its decline in revenue, slightly underperformed the industry average of 2.8%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly dropped by 0.4%. The declining revenue has not hurt the company's bottom line, with increasing earnings per share.
Return on equity has greatly decreased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of major weakness within the corporation. Compared to other companies in the Communications Equipment industry and the overall market, Motorola Solutions' return on equity significantly trails that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.
The company, on the basis of change in net income from the same quarter one year ago, has significantly underperformed against the S&P 500 and did not exceed that of the Communications Equipment industry. The net income has significantly decreased by 41.7% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, falling from $127.00 million to $74.00 million.

3. Cypress Semiconductor

Cypress Semiconductor (CY - Get Report) has a current yield of 3.2%, paying a quarterly dividend of 11 cents a share.

Cypress Semiconductor comprised 2.1% of the portfolio as of March 31. In the most recently reported quarter, Soros increased his stake in the stock by 361.1% to 13.2 million shares.

TheStreet Ratings team rates Cypress Semiconductor as a hold with a ratings score of C. TheStreet Ratings team has this to say about its recommendation:

"We rate Cypress Semiconductor (CY) a hold. The primary factors that have impacted our rating are mixed ? some indicating strength, some showing weaknesses, with little evidence to justify the expectation of either a positive or negative performance for this stock relative to most other stocks. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, solid stock price performance and largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including deteriorating net income and weak operating cash flow."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings team include:

The revenue growth came in higher than the industry average of 0.5%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues rose by 22.8%. This growth in revenue does not appear to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, displayed by a decline in earnings per share.
Compared to its closing price of one year ago, CY's share price has jumped by 43.98%, exceeding the performance of the broader market during that same time frame. Regarding the stock's future course, our hold rating indicates that we do not recommend additional investment in this stock despite its gains in the past year.
Cypress Semiconductor has experienced a steep decline in earnings per share in the most recent quarter in comparison to its performance from the same quarter a year ago. This company has reported somewhat volatile earnings recently. But, we feel it is poised for EPS growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, Cypress Semiconductor turned its bottom line around by earning $0.11 versus -$0.33 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($0.30 versus $0.11).
The company, on the basis of change in net income from the same quarter one year ago, has significantly underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500 and the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry. The net income has significantly decreased by 3010.6% when compared to the same quarter one year ago, falling from -$7.93 million to -$246.80 million.
Net operating cash flow has significantly decreased to $12.29 million or 51.20% when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, when comparing to the industry average, the firm's growth rate is much lower.