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Why First Industrial Realty Trust (FR) is a Great Dividend Stock Right Now

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Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. 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 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.

First Industrial Realty Trust in Focus

Based in Chicago, First Industrial Realty Trust (FR - Free Report) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of -27.66%. Currently paying a dividend of $0.29 per share, the company has a dividend yield of 2.46%. In comparison, the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry's yield is 4.1%, while the S&P 500's yield is 1.83%.

In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.18 is up 9.3% from last year. In the past five-year period, First Industrial Realty Trust has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 7.47%. 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. Right now, First Industrial Realty Trust's payout ratio is 56%, which means it paid out 56% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, FR expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2022 is $2.20 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 11.68%.

Bottom Line

Investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons, from tax advantages and decreasing overall portfolio risk to considerably improving stock investing profits. But, not every company offers 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 must be conscious of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, FR presents a compelling investment opportunity; it's not only an attractive dividend play, but the stock also boasts a strong Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).


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