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Why Oxford Industries (OXM) is a Great Dividend Stock Right Now

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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.

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.

Oxford Industries in Focus

Oxford Industries (OXM - Free Report) is headquartered in Atlanta, and is in the Consumer Discretionary sector. The stock has seen a price change of -4.28% since the start of the year. The owner of the Tommy Bahama, Lilly Pulitzer and Southern Tide clothing lines is paying out a dividend of $0.55 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.26% compared to the Textile - Apparel industry's yield of 0.13% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.71%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $2.20 is up 35% from last year. Over the last 5 years, Oxford Industries has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 7.25%. Future dividend growth will depend on earnings growth as well as payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, Oxford Industries's payout ratio is 22%, which means it paid out 22% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, OXM expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2022 is $10.48 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 31.16%.

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.

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. With that in mind, OXM presents a compelling investment opportunity; it's not only an attractive dividend play, but the stock also boasts a strong Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).


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