Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. 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.
Based in Chicago, Old Republic International (ORI) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 0.91%. The insurance underwriter is currently shelling out a dividend of $2 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.18%. This compares to the Insurance - Multi line industry's yield of 1.6% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.58%.
In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.16 is up 9.4% from last year. In the past five-year period, Old Republic International has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 5.67%. Looking ahead, future dividend growth will be dependent on earnings growth and payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, Old Republic's payout ratio is 29%, which means it paid out 29% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.
Looking at this fiscal year, ORI expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $3.18 per share, with earnings expected to increase 4.95% from the year ago period.
From greatly improving stock investing profits and reducing overall portfolio risk to providing tax advantages, investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide a quarterly payout.
Big, established firms that have more secure profits are often seen as the best dividend options, but it's fairly uncommon to see high-growth businesses or tech start-ups offer their stockholders a dividend. 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 ORI is not only an attractive dividend play, but is also a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).
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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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