Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Are You Looking for a High-Growth Dividend Stock? Portland General Electric (POR) Could Be a Great Choice

Read MoreHide Full Article

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.

Portland General Electric in Focus

Headquartered in Portland, Portland General Electric (POR - Free Report) is a Utilities stock that has seen a price change of 10.87% so far this year. The electric utility is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.41 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.44%. This compares to the Utility - Electric Power industry's yield of 3.24% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.39%.

In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.63 is up 2.8% from last year. Portland General Electric has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 6.09%. 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, Portland General Electric's payout ratio is 58%, which means it paid out 58% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for POR for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2021 is $2.67 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 55.23%.

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.

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. During periods of rising interest rates, income investors must be mindful that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle. That said, they can take comfort from the fact that POR is not only an attractive dividend play, but also represents a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Portland General Electric Company (POR) - free report >>

Published in