A stock's dividend yield moves in the opposite direction as its share price. That means sell-offs can be great opportunities for income-focused investors to satisfy their craving for a higher yield.
Shares of Four Corners Property Trust (FCPT 0.50%) and Tyson Foods (TSN +1.49%) are down sharply over the past year. That's driven up their dividend yields to appetizing levels for income-seeking investors.
A delicious dividend stock
Four Corners Property Trust is a real estate investment trust (REIT). It currently yields 5.1% following a roughly 10% decline in the stock price over the past year, in part because of higher interest rates' impact on REIT valuations. That's well above the S&P 500's 1.6% dividend yield.
NYSE: FCPT
Key Data Points
The company backs that payout with a high-quality real estate portfolio. It primarily owns restaurants leased to leading brands. Its top tenants are Darden Restaurant brands Olive Garden (40% of its annualized base rent) and Longhorn Steakhouse (11%). It also gets another 2% of its rent from other Darden brands (the restaurant company spun off its real estate to create Four Corners in 2015). Brinker International brand Chili's is another top tenant (8% of its rent). Meanwhile, it gets another 22% of its rent from 56 other restaurant brands. In addition, Four Corners Property Trust gets 15% of its rent from non-restaurant retail (primarily automotive and medical).
Four Corners Property Trust collects very steady rental income from its tenants to support its dividend. It has a reasonable dividend payout ratio (83% of its adjusted funds from operations in the first quarter). That gives it some cushion while enabling it to retain cash to acquire additional income-producing real estate. Four Corners Properties also has a solid balance sheet, giving it additional flexibility to expand its real estate portfolio. The company's growing portfolio should allow it to steadily increase its dividend. It raised its already tasty payout by 2.3% late last year.
Challenges have taken a bite out of the share price, pushing the yield to a tasty level
Tyson currently yields an appetizing 3.8%. The more than 40% sell-off in the meat stock over the past year is a big driver of that high yield.
NYSE: TSN
Key Data Points
Tyson's stock has been under pressure because of the challenges facing the protein market. While the company's sales have risen 1.3% over the past six months to almost $26.4 billion, its adjusted operating income has plunged 80% because of margin pressures.
The challenging market conditions have also affected its cash flow. Cash from operating activities was only $769 million over the past six months, which wasn't enough to cover growth capital expenses ($1.1 billion). The company thus had to tap its balance sheet to cover the shortfall, dividend payments ($336 million), and share repurchases ($332 million). As a result, cash on its balance sheet declined from slightly more than $1 billion on October 1st to $543 million at the beginning of April, while total debt grew by about $600 million.
Even though Tyson is facing some near-term challenges, "We have a strong growth strategy in place and are bullish on our long-term outlook," commented CEO Donnie King in the second-quarter earnings release. The company also launched a new productivity plan during its last fiscal year to deliver $1 billion in productivity savings by the end of its 2024 fiscal year. These catalysts should help improve its earnings and cash flow, enhancing the dividend's long-term sustainability. The company has a solid track record of increasing its dividend. It raised its payout by 4.3% last year.
Tempting payouts
Four Corners Property Trust and Tyson Foods currently offer higher dividend yields following the sell-off in their stock prices over the past year. That should make them appetizing options for yield-hungry investors. Meanwhile, they also offer some tantalizing upside potential as their current headwinds fade, and they deliver on their growth strategies.
