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Why Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (BWFG) is a Top Dividend Stock for Your Portfolio

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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 for income investors, generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments is your primary focus.

While cash flow can come from bond interest or interest from other types of investments, income investors hone in on 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 make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. In Focus

Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (BWFG - Free Report) is headquartered in New Canaan, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 53.91% since the start of the year. Currently paying a dividend of $0.18 per share, the company has a dividend yield of 2.39%. In comparison, the Banks - Northeast industry's yield is 2%, while the S&P 500's yield is 1.39%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $0.72 is up 28.6% from last year. In the past five-year period, Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 21.92%. 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. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc.'s current payout ratio is 29%, meaning it paid out 29% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, BWFG expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2021 is $3.22 per share, with earnings expected to increase 329.33% 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. 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 BWFG 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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