Advertisement
U.S. markets close in 4 hours 19 minutes
  • S&P 500

    5,252.71
    +4.22 (+0.08%)
     
  • Dow 30

    39,771.23
    +11.15 (+0.03%)
     
  • Nasdaq

    16,393.91
    -5.61 (-0.03%)
     
  • Russell 2000

    2,128.84
    +14.49 (+0.69%)
     
  • Crude Oil

    82.54
    +1.19 (+1.46%)
     
  • Gold

    2,235.10
    +22.40 (+1.01%)
     
  • Silver

    24.96
    +0.21 (+0.84%)
     
  • EUR/USD

    1.0806
    -0.0023 (-0.22%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.1910
    -0.0050 (-0.12%)
     
  • GBP/USD

    1.2636
    -0.0002 (-0.01%)
     
  • USD/JPY

    151.1750
    -0.0710 (-0.05%)
     
  • Bitcoin USD

    71,040.95
    +1,747.28 (+2.52%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • FTSE 100

    7,968.19
    +36.21 (+0.46%)
     
  • Nikkei 225

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     

Are You Looking for a High-Growth Dividend Stock? American Assets Trust (AAT) Could Be a Great Choice

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.

American Assets Trust in Focus

Based in San Diego, American Assets Trust (AAT) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 0.35%. The real estate investment trust is paying out a dividend of $0.3 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.61% compared to the REIT and Equity Trust - Retail industry's yield of 4.77% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.78%.

In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.20 is up 5.3% from last year. Over the last 5 years, American Assets Trust has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 4.63%. Future dividend growth will depend on earnings growth as well as payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, American Assets Trust's payout ratio is 53%, which means it paid out 53% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for AAT for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 is $2.41 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 9.55%.

Bottom Line

Investors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. However, not all companies offer a quarterly payout.

For instance, it's a rare occurrence when a tech start-up or big growth business offers their shareholders a dividend. It's more common to see larger companies with more established profits give out dividends. Income investors have to be mindful of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, AAT 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).


Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
 
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
 
Zacks Investment Research

Advertisement