Why Ventas (VTR) is a Top Dividend Stock for Your Portfolio

Getting big returns from financial portfolios, whether through stocks, bonds, ETFs, other securities, or a combination of all, is an investor's dream. However, 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 account for significant portions of long-term returns, with dividend contributions exceeding one-third of total returns in many cases.Ventas (VTR) is headquartered in Chicago, and is in the Finance sector. The stock has seen a price change of 17.47% since the start of the year. The seniors housing real estate investment trust is paying out a dividend of $0.48 per share at the moment, with a dividend yield of 2.78% compared to the REIT and Equity Trust - Other industry's yield of 4.87% and the S&P 500's yield of 1.5%.Looking at dividend growth, the company's current annualized dividend of $1.92 is up 6.7% from last year. Over the last 5 years, Ventas has increased its dividend 1 times on a year-over-year basis for an average annual increase of 0.70%. 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. Ventas's current payout ratio is 58%, meaning it paid out 58% of its trailing 12-month EPS as dividend.VTR is expecting earnings to expand this fiscal year as well. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 is $3.46 per share, with earnings expected to increase 8.46% from the year ago period.Investors like dividends for a variety of different reasons, from tax advantages and decreasing overall portfolio risk to considerably improving stock investing profits. It's important to keep in mind that not all companies provide 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. Income investors have to be mindful of the fact that high-yielding stocks tend to struggle during periods of rising interest rates. With that in mind, VTR is a compelling investment opportunity. Not only is it a strong dividend play, but the stock currently sits at a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).Free Report: 3 Software Stocks Poised to SkyrocketSoftware stocks are poised to catapult higher in the coming months (and years) thanks to several factors, especially the explosive growth of AI. Zacks' urgent report reveals 3 top software stocks to own right now.Access the report free today >>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 Ventas, Inc. (VTR): 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