Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Why 1st Source (SRCE) is a Top Dividend Stock for Your Portfolio

Read MoreHide Full Article

All investors love getting big returns from their portfolio, whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities. 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.

1st Source in Focus

Headquartered in South Bend, 1st Source (SRCE - Free Report) is a Finance stock that has seen a price change of 17.4% so far this year. The holding company for 1st Source Bank is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.27 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.28%. This compares to the Banks - Midwest industry's yield of 2.44% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.94%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.08 is up 12.5% from last year. Over the last 5 years, 1st Source has increased its dividend 4 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 10.69%. Future dividend growth will depend on earnings growth as well as payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. 1st Source's current payout ratio is 33%, meaning it paid out 33% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

SRCE is expecting earnings to expand this fiscal year as well. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2019 is $3.55 per share, with earnings expected to increase 12.34% from the year ago period.

Bottom Line

Investors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. 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. Income investors have to be mindful of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. That said, they can take comfort from the fact that SRCE is not only an attractive dividend play, but also represents a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


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


1st Source Corporation (SRCE) - free report >>

Published in