With stock prices slumping, valuations have come down considerably in 2022, and some stocks are downright cheap. But among the benefits of falling stock prices is that dividend yields move in an inverse relationship to stock prices -- at least when payouts hold steady. As such, today, investors can buy some compelling income streams at dirt cheap prices.
Three dividend stocks trading at bargain levels these days are Douglas Dynamics(NYSE: PLOW), Kinder Morgan(NYSE: KMI), and Enterprise Products Partners(NYSE: EPD). Here's why our contributors think they'll be great buys in August.
The supply chain will eventually get fixed
Reuben Gregg Brewer (Douglas Dynamics): Selling and installing commercial work truck attachments and equipment (like snow plows) may not sound exciting, but Douglas Dynamics' dividend yield is as high as it has been in roughly five years. And given that its streak of annual payout increases is over a decade long, this news should be at least a little exciting. Also, at around 3.9%, its dividend yield is notably above the stock's five-year average of roughly 2.9%. For reference, an S&P 500 index fund will only get you a yield of around 1.5% today.
The problem seems to be that this industrial company is facing supply chain headwinds, just like a lot of other companies. It can't get the parts it needs to meet demand, and that's impacting sales. However, management reports that its backlog remains strong and it is sticking with its full-year guidance, which suggests that management thinks that this weak patch is a temporary problem. To be fair, its first-quarter adjusted loss of $0.11 per share was pretty weak, but it was facing a tough comparison against Q1 2021, and the first quarter is typically weak in this highly seasonal business. (Snow plows generally are sold ahead of snow season.)
Since the global supply chain appears to still be in a state of flux, investors shouldn't discount the chance that Douglas Dynamics will deliver more bad news. But those willing to think long-term might be staring at an opportunity to buy into a reliable dividend stock at a discounted price.
Scraping the bottom of the barrel
Matt DiLallo (Kinder Morgan): While shares of Kinder Morgan are up by a double-digit percentage this year, they're still incredibly cheap. Thanks to its stronger-than-expected results and increasingly optimistic outlook, the natural gas pipeline giant now expects its 2022 cash flow to be about 5% above its initial forecast. That would put its distributable cash flow per share at around $2.17 for the year. With the stock recently trading at around $18, Kinder Morgan trades at about 8 times its forward free cash flow.
That's dirt cheap for a company with its profile. The midstream major produces gobs of steady cash flow backed by long-term contracts and government-regulated rate structures, has a strong balance sheet, and increasingly visible growth prospects.
While Kinder Morgan's management isn't happy with the stock price, there's not much they can do about that other than execute the business plan. The strategy calls for the company to continue allocating its copious cash flows toward paying attractive and growing dividends, investing in high-return expansion projects, and opportunistically repurchasing shares. Kinder Morgan has done all three this year. It boosted the dividend by 3%, approved some new pipeline expansion projects, bolstered its renewable natural gas business, and bought back 16 million shares while strengthening its already-solid balance sheet.
Because Kinder Morgan trades at such a cheap valuation, it offers investors a dividend yield of over 6%. With a strong balance sheet and cash-gushing business, that payout is on rock-solid ground, making it look like an excellent buy for income-seeking investors this August.
A steal deal for income investors
Neha Chamaria (Enterprise Products Partners): Enterprise Products Partners boosted its dividend by 5.6% in early July, making this its 24th consecutive year of payout increases. That dividend growth has been underpinned by its steadily rising cash flows. In fact, the oil and natural gas pipeline giant generated record distributable cash flow of $1.8 billion in its first quarter, which covered its dividend by a comfortable 1.8 times. Indeed, that was the highest-ever distribution coverage ratio for Enterprise Products Partners, so one might expect the stock to trade at a premium right now.
Far from it.
Enterprise Products Partners stock is more than one-third off the all-time high it set in 2014, and trading at barely 6.8 times its free cash flow -- significantly below its five-year average. Its yield at the current share price is a rock-solid 7.3%, and management is committed to growing the payout further.
Flush with cash and with no significant debt maturing until at least 2026, Enterprise Products Partners can strike a balance between investing in growth and returning capital to shareholders. It has capital projects worth nearly $4.6 billion under construction, and anything that the company earns beyond what's required to fund its growth will likely end up in shareholders' pockets by way of dividends and share buybacks.
The best part is that Enterprise Products Partners' fortunes aren't as closely tied to unpredictable crude prices as upstream oil companies are, so investors can earn reliable and growing income without exposing their portfolios directly to the oscillations of the oil market. So if you've been eyeing the rally in oil stocks but would prefer to take a more cautious approach to getting involved, Enterprise Products Partners could be your go-to cheap dividend stock right now.
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Matthew DiLallo has positions in Enterprise Products Partners and Kinder Morgan. Neha Chamaria has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. Reuben Gregg Brewer has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Kinder Morgan. The Motley Fool recommends Enterprise Products Partners. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
