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Midland States Bancorp (MSBI) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?

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Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. However, when you're an income investor, your primary focus is generating consistent cash flow from each of your liquid investments.

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

Midland States Bancorp (MSBI - Free Report) is headquartered in Effingham, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 53% since the start of the year. The company is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.33 per share, with a dividend yield of 4.08%. This compares to the Banks - Northeast industry's yield of 2.17% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.44%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.32 is up 4.8% from last year. Over the last 5 years, Midland States Bancorp has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 3.28%. 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. Midland States Bancorp's current payout ratio is 54%, meaning it paid out 54% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, MSBI expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 is $3.40 per share, with earnings expected to increase 100.00% from the year ago period.

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 its 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 MSBI is not only an attractive dividend play, but is also a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

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