We recently compiled a list of the 12 Monthly Dividend Stocks with Over 5% Yield.In this article, we are going to take a look at where Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) stands against the other dividend stocks.
Dividend stocks have always been a go-to choice for investors, no matter how frequently they receive payouts. Companies carefully decide how often to reward their shareholders. While annual or semi-annual dividends can offer larger sums, their unpredictability can leave investors in a bit of a pickle. Most major firms stick to quarterly payouts for practical reasons, but some opt for monthly distributions, which many investors find appealing as they provide a steady flow of passive income. Monthly payouts offer immediate cash flow, helping with day-to-day financial management. Moreover, a cut in monthly dividends would have a smaller immediate impact, making them feel almost like a regular paycheck. However, history shows that while companies offering monthly dividends may offer higher yields, they sometimes fall short on maintaining consistent dividend policies.
Regardless of how often they are paid, dividend stocks have delivered impressive returns over the years. Investors often aim to reduce risk in their portfolios, and dividend stocks offer a dependable way to do so. A report by S&P Dow Jones Indices underscored the growing importance of dividends as a source of personal income. Over the years, dividend income has consistently increased, rising from 2.68% in late 1980 to 7.88% by mid-2024. In contrast, interest income has declined, falling from 14.58% to 7.61% during the same timeframe.
Analysts also suggest adding dividend stocks to portfolios due to the advantages they offer. Savita Subramanian, an equity and quant strategist at Bank of America Corp., also recommended that investors increase their holdings of dividend stocks. Here are some comments from the analyst:
“You want to be in safe dividends — and I know this is the most boring call of all time, but sometimes boring is good. We believe that we are now in a total return world in which the contribution of dividends to total market returns could be significantly higher than it was in the last decade, a period marked by falling cash yields and lofty price returns. We advise investors to seek out companies with above-market and secure (not stretched) dividend yields.”
Within dividend strategy, investors are increasingly drawn to companies that regularly boost their dividends, prompting many firms to focus on sustaining and growing these payments, even in tough economic times. This approach has proven effective, as companies with a track record of dividend growth have yielded impressive long-term returns. A report by Cohen & Steers highlighted that from 2000 to 2010, dividend-paying firms outperformed their non-paying counterparts by an annual margin of 620 basis points, while also experiencing significantly lower risk, as indicated by standard deviation. Over a 30-year period ending in 2011, the advantages of dividend-paying companies became even clearer, with those initiating or increasing dividends consistently outperforming both other dividend-payers and non-payers, delivering higher returns with less volatility.
Although dividend stocks underperformed in 2024, their outlook remains promising. Analysts expect a strong rebound for these stocks, especially with the addition of several major tech companies to the dividend-paying ranks, signaling potential growth in this sector. Given this, we will take a look at some of the best dividend stocks that pay monthly dividends.
Our Methodology:
For this article, we looked through a list of companies that pay monthly dividends and picked those with yields above 5% as of January 14. While analysts don't usually recommend stocks with extremely high dividend yields because they may indicate financial issues, we chose companies with a consistent history of stable dividends despite their high yields. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of their dividend yields. We also considered hedge fund sentiment around each stock using Insider Monkey’s data for Q3 2024.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points. (see more details here).
A professional looking banker shaking hands with a client in a modern office with a view of a bustling city in the background.
Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) is an American specialty finance company, based in Connecticut. The company acquires and manages a range of financial assets, including those related to mortgages, consumers, corporations, and other financial sectors. Its primary objective is to provide attractive, risk-adjusted total returns to its shareholders by investing in opportunities that are anticipated to offer suitable rewards for the risks involved.
In the third quarter of 2024, Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)'s investment portfolio grew as the company leveraged its strong balance sheet to expand its high-yielding loan portfolios. During the quarter, the company's non-QM loan, residential transition loan, commercial mortgage bridge loan, HELOC, and closed-end second-lien loan portfolios increased by a combined 26%, which led to a modest rise in leverage, even as the company reduced its Agency portfolio and preserved additional capital for future investments.
In addition, Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC)'s cash position also remained strong which makes it a solid dividend payer. The company ended the quarter with nearly $218 million available in cash and cash equivalents, compared with $198.5 million at the end of June 2024. Its total assets came in at nearly $16 billion, up from $15.3 billion in the same period last year.
Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) is one of the best dividend stocks as the company has never missed a dividend in the past 15 years. On January 9, it declared a monthly dividend of $0.13 per share, which was in line with its previous dividend. The stock offers an attractive dividend yield of 12.8%, as of January 14.
The number of hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey owning stakes in Ellington Financial Inc. (NYSE:EFC) grew to 9 in Q3 2024, from 5 in the previous quarter. These stakes have a consolidated value of more than $45.4 million. With over 1.1 million shares, Levin Easterly Partners was the company's leading stakeholder in Q3.
Overall EFC ranks 4th on our list of the best monthly dividend stocks with over 5% yield. While we acknowledge the potential of EFC as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than EFC but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
