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

First United Corporation (FUNC Quick QuoteFUNC - Free Report) is headquartered in Oakland, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of -1.76% since the start of the year. The company is paying out a dividend of $0.26 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.83% compared to the Banks - Northeast industry's yield of 2.48% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.5%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.04 is up 13% from last year. Over the last 5 years, First United Corporation has increased its dividend 3 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 13.06%. 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. First United's current payout ratio is 26%, meaning it paid out 26% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for FUNC for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 is $4.25 per share, with earnings expected to increase 7.05% from the year ago period.

From greatly improving stock investing profits and reducing overall portfolio risk to providing tax advantages, investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide 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. 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 FUNC is not only an attractive dividend play, but is also a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).