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PNM Resources (PNM) 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. However, 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 the distribution of a company's earnings paid out to shareholders; it's often viewed by its dividend yield, a metric that measures a dividend as a percent of the current stock price. Many academic studies show that dividends make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.

PNM Resources in Focus

PNM Resources (PNM - Free Report) is headquartered in Albuquerque, and is in the Utilities sector. The stock has seen a price change of -12.6% since the start of the year. The power company is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.31 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.78%. This compares to the Utility - Electric Power industry's yield of 3.48% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.76%.

In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.23 is up 6% from last year. PNM Resources has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 9.50%. 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. PNM Resources's current payout ratio is 53%, meaning it paid out 53% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, PNM expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2020 is $2.21 per share, with earnings expected to increase 2.31% from the year ago period.

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. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide 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. Income investors have to be mindful 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 PNM is not only an attractive dividend play, but also represents a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).


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