First Bancorp (FBP) Could Be a Great Choice

Whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities, all investors love seeing their portfolios score big returns. But 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 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 make up large portions of long-term returns, and in many cases, dividend contributions surpass one-third of total returns.Headquartered in San Juan, First Bancorp (FBP) is a Finance stock that has seen a price change of 14.47% so far this year. The holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.18 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.38%. This compares to the Banks - Southeast industry's yield of 2.36% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.48%.Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $0.72 is up 12.5% from last year. Over the last 5 years, First Bancorp has increased its dividend 5 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 29.65%. 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. First Bancorp's current payout ratio is 38%, meaning it paid out 38% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.Looking at this fiscal year, FBP expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $1.96 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 8.29%.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 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 FBP is not only an attractive dividend play, but is also a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).#1 Semiconductor Stock to Buy (Not NVDA)The incredible demand for data is fueling the market's next digital gold rush. As data centers continue to be built and constantly upgraded, the companies that provide the hardware for these behemoths will become the NVIDIAs of tomorrow.One under-the-radar chipmaker is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the next growth stage of this market. It specializes in semiconductor products that titans like NVIDIA don't build. It's just beginning to enter the spotlight, which is exactly where you want to be.See This Stock Now for Free >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report First BanCorp. (FBP): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).Zacks Investment ResearchWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Zacks