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Is New York Community (NYCB) Worth a Look on 6.7% Dividend Yield?

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Solid dividend-yielding stocks are highly desirable in an uncertain macroeconomic environment. One such stock from the banking industry is New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYCB - Free Report) .

This Hicksville, NY-based bank offers traditional and non-traditional financial products and services and access to multiple service channels, including online and mobile banking. The company’s other former banking subsidiary, New York Commercial Bank, was merged with and into the community bank.

Since 2016, NYCB has been paying a quarterly dividend of 17 cents per share. So, considering last day’s closing price of $10.06, the company’s dividend yield stands at 6.76%. This is impressive compared with the industry average of 3.36% and attractive for income investors as it represents a steady income stream.

Is the New York Community stock worth a look to earn a high dividend yield? Let’s check out the company fundamentals to understand risk and rewards. This will help us make a proper investment decision.

Apart from regular quarterly dividend payouts, NYCB has a steady share repurchase program in place. In 2018, its board of directors approved a $300-million share-buyback program. The company had $9 million remaining under this authorization as of Sep 30, 2023.

New York Community has grown through a series of acquisitions over the years. The acquisition of assets from Signature Bank has further diversified its deposit base and loans. The move also enabled it to enter into the commercial middle-market lending space.

Moreover, the merger deal with Flagstar offered the company a national scale by enhancing its foothold in Northeast/Midwest regions and giving it exposure to high-growth markets.

NYCB maintains a strong balance sheet. It further aims to grow deposits through advancement in its existing borrower base and expansion into the Banking as a service (”BaaS”) space. Deposits recorded a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 34.5% for a three-year period (2020-2022). Further, its net loans witnessed a CAGR of 26.6% during the same period. The rising trend continued for both metrics in the first nine months of 2023.

The company’s net interest income (NII) has been positively impacted by the merger of Flagstar. A larger portion of the balance sheet is driven by the addition of a variable rate loan portfolio from this merger. Moreover, its NII witnessed a CAGR of 43.3% over the last four years ended 2022. The rising trend continued in the first nine months of 2023.

Its non-interest income witnessed a CAGR of 43.3% over the last four years ended 2022. Non-interest income increased significantly in 2022 due to a one-time bargain purchase gain of $159 million. The rising trend continued in the first nine months of 2023.

Despite several near-term headwinds, including rising expenses, weak asset quality and geographic concentration, NYCB is fundamentally solid, given its robust balance sheet and encouraging revenue trends.

In the past three months, shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have declined 10.7% against the industry’s rally of 18.1%.

Zacks Investment Research
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

Therefore, income investors should keep this stock on their radar as this will help generate robust returns over time.

Bank Stocks With Solid Dividends

Banking stocks like Truist Financial (TFC - Free Report) and Huntington Bancshares (HBAN - Free Report) are worth a look, as these, too, have decent dividend yields. Each stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Considering the last day’s closing price, Truist Financial’s dividend yield currently stands at 5.81%. In the past three months, shares of TFC have gained 26.5%.

Based on the last day’s closing price, Huntington Bancshares’ dividend yield currently stands at 4.97%. In the past three months, shares of HBAN have gained 11.5%.

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