Why Central Pacific Financial (CPF) is a Great Dividend Stock Right Now

Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. 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 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.Central Pacific Financial in FocusHeadquartered in Honolulu, Central Pacific Financial (CPF) is a Finance stock that has seen a price change of -8.36% so far this year. The operator of Central Pacific Bank is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.27 per share, with a dividend yield of 4.06%. This compares to the Banks - West industry's yield of 3.13% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.62%.Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.08 is up 3.8% from last year. Central Pacific Financial has increased its dividend 2 times on a year-over-year basis over the last 5 years for an average annual increase of 3.19%. 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. Central Pacific Financial's current payout ratio is 43%. This means it paid out 43% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.Looking at this fiscal year, CPF expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $2.83 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 20.94%.Bottom LineInvestors like dividends for many reasons; they greatly improve stock investing profits, decrease overall portfolio risk, and carry tax advantages, among others. 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. That said, they can take comfort from the fact that CPF is not only an attractive dividend play, but is also a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).5 Stocks Set to DoubleEach was handpicked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2024. While not all picks can be winners, previous recommendations have soared +143.0%, +175.9%, +498.3% and +673.0%.Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>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 CPB Inc. (CPF): 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