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M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. (MDC) 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 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 make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.

M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. In Focus

M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. (MDC - Free Report) is headquartered in Denver, and is in the Construction sector. The stock has seen a price change of -39.39% since the start of the year. The company is paying out a dividend of $0.5 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 5.91% compared to the Building Products - Home Builders industry's yield of 0.64% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.71%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $2 is up 19.8% from last year. M.D.C. Holdings, Inc. has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 19.48%. 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. M.D.C. Holdings, Inc.'s current payout ratio is 24%, meaning it paid out 24% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for MDC for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2022 is $10.65 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 36.02%.

Bottom Line

Investors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide a quarterly payout.

For instance, it's a rare occurrence when a tech start-up or big growth business offers their shareholders a dividend. It's more common to see larger companies with more established profits give out dividends. 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 MDC 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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