Group 1 - The financial services sector is crucial to the global economy, with trillions of dollars circulating among consumers, businesses, and markets, making it a prime area for finding high-quality investment opportunities [2] - Building a portfolio of dividend stocks is a gradual process, and there are three recommended dividend-paying financial stocks for long-term investment [3] Group 2 - Visa is a leading payment processing network that benefits from transaction fees, which increase with rising prices and transaction values; it has paid and raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years with a low payout ratio of 20% of 2025 earnings estimates [5][6] - Analysts project Visa's earnings to grow approximately 13% annually over the next three to five years, with a current valuation of 27 times 2025 earnings estimates considered fair for such a high-quality business [7] Group 3 - S&P Global is a key authority on financial debt globally, providing essential data and analytics for investors, particularly in the bond market, where it grades corporate debt [10] - The company has a highly profitable business model based on intangible assets and has converted over a third of its trailing-12-month revenue into free cash flow, allowing it to be a strong dividend payer; it has paid and raised its dividend for 51 consecutive years [11]