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Brookline Bancorp (BRKL) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?

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Whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities, all investors love seeing their portfolios score big returns. But 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.

Brookline Bancorp in Focus

Headquartered in Boston, Brookline Bancorp (BRKL - Free Report) is a Finance stock that has seen a price change of 7.74% so far this year. Currently paying a dividend of $0.11 per share, the company has a dividend yield of 2.95%. In comparison, the Financial - Savings and Loan industry's yield is 2.28%, while the S&P 500's yield is 1.87%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $0.44 is up 11.4% from last year. Brookline Bancorp has increased its dividend 3 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 4.36%. 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. Brookline's current payout ratio is 39%. This means it paid out 39% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for BRKL for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2019 is $1.16 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 8.41%.

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.

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, BRKL 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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