Yahoo Finance Is OFG Bancorp (NYSE:OFG) An Attractive Dividend Stock?
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Dividends play an important role in compounding returns in the long run and end up forming a sizeable part of investment returns. Historically, OFG Bancorp (NYSE:OFG) has paid dividends to shareholders, and these days it yields 1.3%. Does OFG Bancorp tick all the boxes of a great dividend stock? Below, I’ll take you through my analysis.
See our latest analysis for OFG Bancorp
5 checks you should use to assess a dividend stock
When researching a dividend stock, I always follow the following screening criteria:
Is it paying an annual yield above 75% of dividend payers?
Has its dividend been stable over the past (i.e. no missed payments or significant payout cuts)?
Has dividend per share amount increased over the past?
Is is able to pay the current rate of dividends from its earnings?
Will it be able to continue to payout at the current rate in the future?
How does OFG Bancorp fare?
The company currently pays out 16% of its earnings as a dividend, according to its trailing twelve-month data, meaning the dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Going forward, analysts expect OFG’s payout to increase to 17% of its earnings. Assuming a constant share price, this equates to a dividend yield of 1.5%. Furthermore, EPS should increase to $1.71. The higher payout forecasted, along with higher earnings, should lead to greater dividend income for investors moving forward.
When considering the sustainability of dividends, it is also worth checking the cash flow of a company. A company with strong cash flow, relative to earnings, can sometimes sustain a high pay out ratio.
If there’s one type of stock you want to be reliable, it’s dividend stocks and their stable income-generating ability. Dividend payments from OFG Bancorp have been volatile in the past 10 years, with some years experiencing significant drops of over 25%. These characteristics do not bode well for income investors seeking reliable stream of dividends.
Compared to its peers, OFG Bancorp has a yield of 1.3%, which is on the low-side for Banks stocks.
Next Steps:
After digging a little deeper into OFG Bancorp’s yield, it’s easy to see why you should be cautious investing in the company just for the dividend. But if you are not exclusively a dividend investor, the stock could still be an interesting investment opportunity. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, you should always research extensively before deciding whether or not a stock is an appropriate investment for you. I always recommend analysing the company’s fundamentals and underlying business before making an investment decision. I’ve put together three fundamental factors you should further examine:
Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for OFG’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for OFG’s outlook.
Valuation: What is OFG worth today? Even if the stock is a cash cow, it’s not worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether OFG is currently mispriced by the market.
Dividend Rockstars: Are there better dividend payers with stronger fundamentals out there? Check out our free list of these great stocks here.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.