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Is the AI Boom a Bubble? These 2 Dividend Stocks Say No
By Bridget Bennett. Published: 12/19/2025.
Key Points
- Valuations in the AI sector remain high, but historical patterns suggest a bubble is unlikely to burst while caution prevails.
- Black Hills Corp. is positioned to benefit from AI-related energy demands through its utility footprint in rural data center boomtowns.
- Nutrien offers a defensive AI hedge, with stable demand driven by global agriculture and minimal AI sector exposure.
As 2025 winds down, tech investors face a familiar mix of excitement and anxiety. With AI stock valuations at historic highs, the question heading into 2026 is no longer whether AI is transformative—but whether the market has gotten ahead of itself.
Recent news added to the unease: Oracle (NYSE: ORCL) reportedly lost a key funding partner, a move that briefly rattled investor sentiment. Still, Lichtenfeld emphasized the reaction was limited and far from a collapse: "It's not like the markets are tanking and crashing. It's just down today a bit on the news."
Nvidia CEO Issues Bold Tesla Call (Ad)
While headlines focus on Tesla's car sales, tech analyst Jeff Brown says the real story is Tesla's role in a $25 trillion AI revolution — one that Nvidia's CEO himself has called a "multi-trillion-dollar future industry" — and he's uncovered a little-known stock 168 times smaller than Nvidia that could be positioned to ride this breakthrough.
Click here now to see the full reportMarc Lichtenfeld of The Oxford Group says the concern is understandable but cautions investors against jumping to conclusions. "Typically, bubbles don't burst when everybody is talking about the possibility of the bubble bursting," he explains. "When the bubble bursts is when everybody thinks it's only going to go up forever." That's not the mood in the market right now.
Lichtenfeld, a longtime dividend investor and author of Get Rich with Dividends, has found that focusing on companies with strong cash flow and rising payouts offers a way to ride the trend—or hedge against it. He recently shared his updated list of top dividend stocks for 2026, featuring picks for both bullish and defensive investors.
In his latest analysis, Lichtenfeld spotlighted two under-the-radar dividend stocks—one that benefits directly from AI's growing infrastructure demands, and one that could thrive even if the tech trade falters.
Black Hills Corp.: A Utility Stock Charging the AI Boom
One of Lichtenfeld's preferred ways to play the AI trend is Black Hills Corp. (NYSE: BKH), a South Dakota–based utility that's deeply embedded in regions becoming AI infrastructure hubs.
"Cheyenne and other parts of Wyoming are becoming boomtowns for data centers because land and electricity are cheap," he says. With power-hungry AI applications expanding, utility providers in these rural areas are well positioned to benefit.
What makes BKH even more compelling, Lichtenfeld explains, is that the company was already projecting 5% to 7% annual earnings growth before the data center expansion. Now, with growing demand from high-profile customers like Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META), there's potential for stronger upside.
Black Hills is also in the process of acquiring NorthWestern Energy (NYSE: NWE), which would add roughly 800,000 customers and broaden its utility footprint.
Though utilities are traditionally seen as defensive, Lichtenfeld calls this "a rare bird—a utility stock with upside." BKH also has a long-term dividend track record, having raised its payout every year since 1971 and currently yielding about 3.8%.
Nutrien: A Defensive Play Outside the AI Hype
For investors skeptical of the AI boom—or looking to diversify—Lichtenfeld turns to Nutrien Ltd. (NYSE: NTR), one of the world's largest potash producers.
"Regardless of what's happening in AI, people have to eat," he says. "And to grow more food, you need fertilizer." That logic underpins his bullish view on Nutrien, which holds roughly 20% of global market share and has navigated commodity cycles with consistency.
He sees the stock's lack of tech exposure as a feature, not a flaw. "If you're looking for an investment that's outside the scope of AI in case there is a bubble crash, this is one of those plays."
While Wall Street remains tepid—about half of analysts rate the name a hold or sell—Lichtenfeld views that skepticism as an opportunity. "I prefer stocks that Wall Street analysts don't like because they're often late to the party. When those upgrades finally come, they can really push the stock higher."
With a dividend yield of 3.5%, a forward P/E of 13, and trading at roughly 7x cash flow, Nutrien looks attractively priced. And even if AI ultimately improves farming efficiency, Lichtenfeld argues that could boost demand for fertilizers—another potential tailwind.
What About Palantir and NVIDIA?
The AI titans still dominate headlines. Lichtenfeld flagged Palantir (NASDAQ: PLTR) and NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) as examples of the sector's elevated multiples—PLTR trading around 250x earnings and 225x cash flow, and NVDA at about 55x.
While those numbers are eye-catching, he cautions against overreacting. "Bubbles don't burst because of high valuations. When they do burst, those valuations make it worse. But people don't usually sell stocks just because they're expensive—very often, they keep buying them."
Focus on Dividends, Regardless of the Narrative
No matter which side of the AI debate you fall on, Lichtenfeld returns to a familiar anchor: income. "Even if the market drops 10%, a 5% or 6% dividend yield softens the blow," he says. "And in a strong market, that dividend adds to your total return."
By emphasizing companies that consistently grow their payouts, he believes investors can better weather volatility, outpace inflation, and unlock the long-term power of compounding.
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