Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Are You Looking for a High-Growth Dividend Stock?

Read MoreHide Full Article

All investors love getting big returns from their portfolio, whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities. But when you're an income investor, your primary focus is generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments.

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 account for significant portions of long-term returns, with dividend contributions exceeding one-third of total returns in many cases.

Greenbrier Companies in Focus

Based in Lake Oswego, Greenbrier Companies (GBX - Free Report) is in the Transportation sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 3.17%. The maker of railroad freight car equipment is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.3 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.63%. This compares to the Transportation - Equipment and Leasing industry's yield of 1.8% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.6%.

In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.20 is up 8.1% from last year. Greenbrier Companies has increased its dividend 2 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 2.37%. 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, Greenbrier's payout ratio is 31%, which means it paid out 31% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, GBX expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 is $3.67 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 23.57%.

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. 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. During periods of rising interest rates, income investors must be mindful that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle. That said, they can take comfort from the fact that GBX is not only an attractive dividend play, but also represents a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Greenbrier Companies, Inc. (The) (GBX) - free report >>

Published in