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Highwoods Properties (HIW) Could Be a Great Choice

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All investors love getting big returns from their portfolio, whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities. 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.

Highwoods Properties in Focus

Headquartered in Raleigh, Highwoods Properties (HIW - Free Report) is a Finance stock that has seen a price change of -23.44% so far this year. The real estate investment trust is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.5 per share, with a dividend yield of 5.86%. This compares to the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry's yield of 4.05% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.72%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $2 is up 2% from last year. In the past five-year period, Highwoods Properties has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 2.34%. 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. Right now, Highwoods Properties's payout ratio is 51%, which means it paid out 51% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

HIW is expecting earnings to expand this fiscal year as well. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2022 is $3.95 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 4.77%.

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.

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 HIW 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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