Back to top

Image: Bigstock

First American Financial (FAF) is a Top Dividend Stock Right Now: Should You Buy?

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. 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 American Financial in Focus

First American Financial (FAF - Free Report) is headquartered in Santa Ana, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 21.48% since the start of the year. The financial services company is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.42 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.1%. This compares to the Insurance - Property and Casualty industry's yield of 1.35% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.88%.

Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $1.68 is up 5% from last year. In the past five-year period, First American Financial has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 15.39%. Any future dividend growth will depend on both earnings growth and the company's payout ratio; a payout ratio is the proportion of a firm's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. Right now, First American Financial's payout ratio is 36%, which means it paid out 36% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Earnings growth looks solid for FAF for this fiscal year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2019 is $4.74 per share, with earnings expected to increase 13.13% from the year ago period.

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. But, not every company offers 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. With that in mind, FAF 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:


First American Financial Corporation (FAF) - free report >>

Published in