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This is Why MGIC Investment (MTG) is a Great Dividend Stock

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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.

While cash flow can come from bond interest or interest from other types of investments, income investors hone in on 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.

MGIC Investment (MTG - Free Report) is headquartered in Milwaukee, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 6.43% since the start of the year. The mortgage insurance company is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.17 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.19%. This compares to the Insurance - Multi line industry's yield of 1.77% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.34%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $0.68 is up 21.4% from last year. Over the last 5 years, MGIC Investment has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 20.17%. 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. MGIC's current payout ratio is 19%, meaning it paid out 19% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, MTG expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 is $3.24 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 3.18%.

Investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons, from tax advantages and decreasing overall portfolio risk to considerably improving stock investing profits. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide 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, MTG presents a compelling investment opportunity; it's not only an attractive dividend play, but the stock also boasts a strong Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

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