By Aditya Raghunath at The Motley Fool Canada
Canadian energy investors had a lot to cheer about this earnings season. Both Enbridge (TSX:ENB) and Suncor Energy (TSX:SU) held their annual shareholder meetings in early May, and both companies received strong votes of confidence from investors while reporting strong operational numbers.
But if you can only own one dividend-paying energy stock, which deserves your money through the rest of 2026 and beyond? I dug into what both companies told shareholders directly, and one stock stands out as the better long-term hold.
Enbridge keeps its dividend streak alive
Enbridge CEO Greg Ebel told shareholders at the May 6 annual general meeting that 2025 marked the company’s 20th consecutive year of meeting or exceeding its own financial guidance. This remarkable run showcases the durability of Enbridge’s robust business model.
The energy giant also sanctioned its 31st straight annual dividend increase, raising the payout by 3% for 2026. Enbridge kept its debt-to-EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization) ratio inside its target range of 4.5 to five times, all while allocating $14 billion towards new projects.
Looking ahead, Enbridge is advancing a $39 billion project portfolio through the end of the decade, spanning natural gas, liquids pipelines and renewable power.
Its gas utility business now serves more than seven million customers, and the company said one in every 12 natural gas utility customers in Canada and the United States is an Enbridge customer.
Suncor delivers its best year on record
At Suncor’s annual analyst event, CEO Rich Kruger described 2025 as the company’s best year ever across safety, reliability, and profitability.
Upstream production in 2025 stood at 860,000 barrels a day, while refining throughput topped 480,000 barrels a day, both of which were company records.
Last year, Suncor spent $5.7 billion in capital expenditures, above its midpoint guidance of $5.2 billion. Its operating expenses held steady at $13.2 billion despite higher volumes, allowing it to distribute nearly $5.8 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. The Canadian dividend stock raised its payout by 5% last November and allocated $2.8 billion towards dividends in 2025.
Suncor also said it beat every target from its 2024 Investor Day plan a full year ahead of schedule, then rolled out a new three-year plan in March aiming to grow production by another 100,000 barrels a day and cut its breakeven oil price below $40 a barrel.
My take: Suncor is the dividend pick for 2026
Both Suncor and Enbridge raised the dividend payout in 2025. However, Suncor reported record production and record refining utilization last year. Its management team has now beaten its own guidance twice in a row.
Suncor stock rose 19% last year, outpacing the peer group average by 14 percentage points, which reflects operational efficiency and company-specific improvements.
Investors seeking stronger total returns over the next 12 months should consider Suncor stock in July 2026. Its combination of record operational performance, disciplined spending, and an aggressive growth plan gives it more room to surprise to the upside. By comparison, Enbridge is a better dividend stock for conservative investors seeking a higher yield.
The post Enbridge vs. Suncor: The Dividend Pick I’d Own Through 2026 appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.
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Fool contributor Aditya Raghunath has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Enbridge. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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