This is Why ING Groep (ING) is a Great Dividend Stock

All investors love getting big returns from their portfolio, whether it's through stocks, bonds, ETFs, or other types of securities. However, 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 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.ING Groep in FocusBased in Amsterdam, ING Groep (ING) is in the Finance sector, and so far this year, shares have seen a price change of 22.4%. The financial services provider is paying out a dividend of $0.65 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 6.81% compared to the Banks - Foreign industry's yield of 3.84% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.65%.Taking a look at the company's dividend growth, its current annualized dividend of $1.31 is up 28.8% from last year. Over the last 5 years, ING Groep has increased its dividend 3 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 45.79%. Future dividend growth will depend on earnings growth as well as payout ratio, which is the proportion of a company's annual earnings per share that it pays out as a dividend. ING's current payout ratio is 30%, meaning it paid out 30% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.Looking at this fiscal year, ING expects solid earnings growth. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $2.24 per share, which represents a year-over-year growth rate of 4.67%.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.Big, established firms that have more secure profits are often seen as the best dividend options, but it's fairly uncommon to see high-growth businesses or tech start-ups offer their stockholders a dividend. Income investors must be conscious of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, ING presents a compelling investment opportunity; it's not only an attractive dividend play, but the stock also boasts a strong Zacks Rank of #1 (Strong Buy).7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 DaysJust released: Experts distill 7 elite stocks from the current list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys. They deem these tickers "Most Likely for Early Price Pops."Since 1988, the full list has beaten the market more than 2X over with an average gain of +23.9% per year. So be sure to give these hand picked 7 your immediate attention. See them now >>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 ING Group, N.V. (ING): 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