The Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) crossed the 5,000 mark last week.
For income investors, there’s a catch.
As blue-chip share prices surge, dividend yields compress.
This leaves dividend investors hunting further afield for 5%-plus yields.
Yet chasing yield alone is a trap.
An enticing payout means little if the cash flow behind it is shaky.
Here are three stocks beyond the STI that still offer attractive yields – and, crucially, each has a distinct driver supporting its dividend sustainability.
Digital Core REIT (SGX: DCRU)
Digital Core REIT, or DCR, is a pure-play data centre REIT sponsored by Digital Realty Trust (NYSE: DLR).
The REIT owns 11 freehold data centres across the US, Canada, Germany, and Japan with assets under management of US$1.8 billion.
DCR reported a strong set of results for 2025.
Gross revenue surged 72.2% year on year (YoY0 to US$176.2 million, while net property income climbed 43.5% to US$88.7 million.
Distribution per unit (DPU) held steady at US$0.0360, unchanged from a year ago.
The sustainability case here rests on demand-driven rental growth.
During the year, the REIT signed US$26 million of annualised rent at a positive cash rental reversion of 31%.
DCR also secured a 10-year lease at its Linton Hall facility with an investment grade cloud provider at a 35% premium over the previous rent, lengthening its weighted average lease expiry (WALE) from 4.6 years to 5.5 years on a pro forma basis.
Aggregate leverage remained decent at 37.1% with over US$500 million of debt headroom, while the REIT established a US$750 million medium-term note programme for financing flexibility.
That said, DPU was flat despite the revenue surge, suggesting that growth capex, including a US$87 million Osaka data centre acquisition, is absorbing the upside for now.
Investors are paying for future DPU growth rather than current growth.
At US$0.52, shares offer a trailing distribution yield of 6.9%.
Valuetronics Holdings (SGX: BN2)
Valuetronics is an integrated electronics manufacturing services (EMS) provider operating through two segments: Industrial and Commercial Electronics (ICE) and Consumer Electronics (CE).
For the six months ended 30 September 2025 (1HFY2026), revenue declined 3% YoY to just under HK$837 million.
However, the headline number masks a deliberate transformation taking place beneath the surface.
The dividend sustainability story centres on margin improvement through portfolio rationalisation.
Gross margin expanded from 16.8% to 18.8% as the higher-margin ICE segment grew to 84.5% of total revenue, up from 77.6% a year ago.
The ICE segment itself grew 5.7% to around HK$707 million, driven by new customers in network-access-solutions and cooling solutions for high-performance computing.
Net profit rose 2.7% YoY to HK$93 million despite lower revenue, while operating profit before interest income jumped 14.5% to HK$73.8 million.
Valuetronics declared an interim and special dividend totalling HK$0.08 per share with the special dividend signalling management confidence in the company’s cash position.
Management expects to complete the phase-out of low-margin traditional consumer lifestyle products by end-FY2026, which should further strengthen the profitability profile.
However, interest income fell 29.3% following US Federal Reserve rate cuts, and the group’s AI joint venture incurred losses.
Tariff uncertainties also loom, though its Vietnam manufacturing facility provides a strategic buffer for serving North American customers.
At S$0.86, shares provide a trailing dividend yield of around 5.1%.
United Hampshire US REIT (SGX: ODBU)
United Hampshire US REIT, or UHREIT, owns 20 grocery-anchored and necessity-based retail properties along with two self-storage facilities across eight US states, with assets under management of US$731.7 million.
UHREIT reported mixed results for 3Q2025.
Gross revenue rose 1.4% YoY to around US$18 million, while net property income increased 5.7% to US$12.7 million.
For 9M2025, however, revenue and NPI declined 1.6% and 1.9% respectively due to the absence of rental contributions from divested properties.
The sustainability case rests on falling finance costs and disciplined capital recycling.
Distributable income surged 15.5% year on year in 3Q2025 to US$7 million, driven by reduced borrowing costs from a 1.5% SOFR reduction since 4Q2024.
DPU for 1H2025 rose 4% YoY to US$0.0209.
Operationally, committed occupancy remained strong at 97.2% for grocery properties and 94.9% for self-storage.
On capital management, UHREIT completed a refinancing that enlarged its credit facility from US$250 million to US$350 million, extending its weighted average debt maturity from 1.6 years to 4.8 years and significantly reducing near-term refinancing risk.
Most recently, UHREIT acquired Wallingford Fair Shopping Center in Connecticut for US$21.4 million (8.2% below independent valuation).
The freehold property is 100% occupied by anchor tenant ShopRite with a WALE of 12.8 years and is expected to increase DPU by 2%.
The risk to watch: the yield tailwind from lower rates could reverse if interest rates rise, and top-line revenue is shrinking from divestments even as distributable income grows.
At US$0.55, shares offer a trailing distribution yield of 7.6%.
Get Smart: Look beyond the headline yield
With the STI at record highs, 5%-plus yields are getting harder to find among blue chips.
But yield alone is never enough – what matters is the underlying business supporting the payout.
DCR’s distributions are backed by strong data centre demand, evidenced by 31% rental reversions and a lengthening WALE.
Valuetronics is generating higher profits from lower revenue through a deliberate shift toward higher-margin products.
And UHREIT is growing distributable income through lower finance costs and accretive acquisitions anchored by necessity-based tenants.
Each stock offers a different path to dividend sustainability.
As dividend investors, our job is to look past the yield percentage and understand the engine that drives it.
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Disclosure: Calvina Lee does not own any of the stocks mentioned. Chin Hui Leong contributed to the article and does not own any of the stocks mentioned.
