Pitney Bowes (PBI) Could Be a Great Choice

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.

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.

Based in Stamford, Pitney Bowes (PBI) is in the Computer and Technology sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 59.25%. The mailing equipment and software company is currently shelling out a dividend of $0.08 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.78%. This compares to the Office Automation and Equipment industry's yield of 2.64% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.54%.

Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $0.32 is up 60% from last year. Over the last 5 years, Pitney Bowes has increased its dividend 1 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 2.90%. 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. Pitney Bowes's current payout ratio is 25%, meaning it paid out 25% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.

Looking at this fiscal year, PBI expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $1.30 per share, representing a year-over-year earnings growth rate of 58.54%.

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.

For instance, it's a rare occurrence when a tech start-up or big growth business offers its shareholders a dividend. It's more common to see larger companies with more established profits give out dividends. 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 PBI is not only an attractive dividend play, but also represents a compelling investment opportunity with a Zacks Rank of #2 (Buy).

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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