Alexandria Real Estate Equities (ARE) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?

All investors love getting big returns from their portfolio, whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities. But for income investors, generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments is your primary focus.

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.

Alexandria Real Estate Equities in Focus

Headquartered in Pasadena, Alexandria Real Estate Equities (ARE) is a Finance stock that has seen a price change of -6.23% so far this year. The life science real estate company is currently shelling out a dividend of $1.09 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.61%. This compares to the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry's yield of 3.58% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.47%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $4.36 is up 2.8% from last year. In the past five-year period, Alexandria Real Estate Equities has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 7.19%. 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. Alexandria Real Estate Equities's current payout ratio is 59%, meaning it paid out 59% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, ARE expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2021 is $7.71 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 5.62%.

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. But, not every company offers 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. During periods of rising interest rates, income investors must be mindful that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle. With that in mind, ARE is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold).

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