Back to top

Image: Bigstock

This is Why Boston Properties (BXP) is a Great Dividend Stock

Read MoreHide Full Article

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.

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.

Boston Properties in Focus

Boston Properties (BXP - Free Report) is headquartered in Boston, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 18.27% since the start of the year. The real estate investment trust is paying out a dividend of $0.95 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.85% compared to the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry's yield of 4.38% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.92%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $3.80 is up 8.6% from last year. Boston Properties has increased its dividend 3 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 7.87%. 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. Boston Properties's current payout ratio is 60%. This means it paid out 60% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for BXP for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2019 is $6.89 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 9.37%.

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.

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 must be conscious of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, BXP 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).


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


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


Boston Properties, Inc. (BXP) - free report >>

Published in