The Growing Power of Dividends

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Topic: Dividend Stocks

Enjoy 7.8% yield from Verizon

Verizon

Verizon continues to update its network. That’s helping it sign up new users, which should support the high dividend yield.

Meanwhile, the company continues to hold its own as lower demand for new smartphones reduced revenues and earnings in the most recent quarter.

The stock trades at just 8.0 times the company’s 2023 earnings forecast.

The Growing Power of Dividends

Learn everything you need to know in '7 Winning Strategies for Dividend Investors' for FREE from The Successful Investor.

The Best Canadian Dividend Stocks to Buy: REITS Canada and other Top Canadian Dividend Stocks.

 I consent to receiving information from The Successful Investor via email. I understand I can unsubscribe from these updates at any time.

VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC. (New York symbol VZ; www.verizon.com) is the second-largest wireless carrier in the U.S. after AT&T, with 143.6 million subscribers (consumers and businesses) as of September 30, 2023.

The stock has come under pressure lately following media reports that its old telephone lines with lead sheathing are contaminating the environment. The company switched to plastic sheathing in the 1950s.

It’s unclear how much Verizon and other telecom providers will have to pay to remove these lines. However, it’s likely the company will spread out costs over many years, which reduces the possibility that it will have to cut the dividend.

With the November 2023 payment, Verizon raised your quarterly dividend by 1.9%, to $0.665 a share from $0.6525. The new annual rate of $2.66 a share yields a very high 7.1%. With this increase, the company has now raised its dividend each year for the past 17 years.

Despite that high yield, the new rate looks sustainable. Verizon’s annual dividend payments will total roughly $11 billion, which is equal to about 60% of its 2023 projected free cash flow (regular cash flow less maintenance capital expenditures) of at least $18 billion.

Dividend Stocks: Verizon’s revenues and earnings remain durable and cheap

Meantime, in the third quarter of 2023, Verizon added 100,000 wireless phone subscribers under long-term contracts (net of cancellations). However, due to lower sales of new phones, revenue fell 2.6%, to $33.34 billion from $34.24 billion a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, per-share earnings fell 7.6%, to $1.22 from $1.32 on higher interest and depreciation charges.

The company will probably earn $4.70 a share in 2023, and the stock trades at just 8.0 times that forecast.

Verizon has raised your dividend by an average of 2.0% annually over the past 5 years. The stock holds a Highest TSI Dividend Sustainability Rating.

Recommendation in Dividend Advisor: Verizon Communications Inc. is a buy.

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