Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Are You Looking for a High-Growth Dividend Stock?

Read MoreHide Full Article

Whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities, all investors love seeing their portfolios score big returns. 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.

Orrstown Financial Services in Focus

Based in Harrisburg, Orrstown Financial Services (ORRF - Free Report) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 21.52%. Currently paying a dividend of $0.23 per share, the company has a dividend yield of 2.57%. In comparison, the Banks - Northeast industry's yield is 2.72%, while the S&P 500's yield is 1.5%.

In terms of dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $0.92 is up 15% from last year. In the past five-year period, Orrstown Financial Services has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 5.85%. 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. Orrstown's current payout ratio is 23%. This means it paid out 23% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for ORRF for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2024 is $3.61 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 2.85%.

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 have to be mindful of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, ORRF is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of 3 (Hold).


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


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


Orrstown Financial Services Inc (ORRF) - free report >>

Published in