1st Source (SRCE) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?
Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. However, when you're an income investor, your primary focus is generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments.
Cash flow can come from bond interest, interest from other types of investments, and of course, dividends. A dividend is that coveted distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders, and investors often view it by its dividend yield, a metric that measures the dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends account for significant portions of long-term returns, with dividend contributions exceeding one-third of total returns in many cases.
1st Source in Focus
Based in South Bend, 1st Source (SRCE) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 11.5%. The holding company for 1st Source Bank is paying out a dividend of $0.27 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.4% compared to the Banks - Midwest industry's yield of 2.58% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.96%.
Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $1.08 is up 12.5% from last year. Over the last 5 years, 1st Source has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 10.69%. Any future dividend growth will depend on both earnings growth and the company's payout ratio; a payout ratio is the proportion of a firm's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, 1st Source's payout ratio is 33%, which means it paid out 33% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.
Looking at this fiscal year, SRCE expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2019 is $3.55 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 12.34%.
Bottom Line
From greatly improving stock investing profits and reducing overall portfolio risk to providing tax advantages, investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons. However, not all companies offer a quarterly payout.
High-growth firms or tech start-ups, for example, rarely provide their shareholders a dividend, while larger, more established companies that have more secure profits are often seen as the best dividend options. Income investors must be conscious of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. That said, they can take comfort from the fact that SRCE is not only an attractive dividend play, but also represents a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
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