Are Barclays PLC, Galliford Try plc And Netcall plc Among The Best Dividend Payers Out There?

Barclays PLC (LON: BARC), Galliford Try plc (LON: GFRD) and Netcall plc (LON: NET) are all set to stump up the cash.

| More on:

The content of this article was relevant at the time of publishing. Circumstances change continuously and caution should therefore be exercised when relying upon any content contained within this article.

When investing, your capital is at risk. The value of your investments can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you put in.

Read More

The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and is not intended to be, nor does it constitute, any form of personal advice. Investments in a currency other than sterling are exposed to currency exchange risk. Currency exchange rates are constantly changing, which may affect the value of the investment in sterling terms. You could lose money in sterling even if the stock price rises in the currency of origin. Stocks listed on overseas exchanges may be subject to additional dealing and exchange rate charges, and may have other tax implications, and may not provide the same, or any, regulatory protection as in the UK.

You’re reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool’s Premium Investing Services. Become a Motley Fool member today to get instant access to our top analyst recommendations, in-depth research, investing resources, and more. Learn More.

I was surprised when Barclays (LSE: BARC) told us it’s going to slash its 2016 dividend by more than 50% after announcing a fall in full-year profits — so you might be surprised to see me touting the bank as a top dividend prospect.

Pessimism priced in

The thing is, in these tough times when the final extent of banking penalties for past misbehaviour is still an unknown, I’m really not so much interested in this year’s dividend as in future ones — and I’m encouraged by Barclays’ longer-term expectations to “pay out a significant proportion of earnings in dividends to shareholders over time“.

The 3p per share that Barclays intends to pay this year and next would be covered 5.6 times by forecast 2016 earnings and 7.6 times on 2017 predictions, which is massively over-covered in comparison to long-term requirements — even if Barclays aimed for longer-term cover of two times, which would be above the likely sector average, we’d be looking at yields getting up towards 8% or so.

Should you invest £1,000 in AstraZeneca right now?

When investing expert Mark Rogers has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for nearly a decade has provided thousands of paying members with top stock recommendations from the UK and US markets. And right now, Mark thinks there are 6 standout stocks that investors should consider buying. Want to see if AstraZeneca made the list?

See the 6 stocks

That’s largely because the share price has taken a pummelling, losing 40% over the past 12 months to 145p. That puts Barclays on a forward P/E of only nine for this year, dropping as low as six on 2017 forecasts — and to me that means the current share valuation has far more pessimism built in than is warranted. And I see Barclays shares now as one of the best dividend bargains for 2020 and beyond.

Building profits

The housebuilding and construction sector has been the big success of the past few years, with Galliford Try (LSE: GFRD) a shining light. We’ve seen year on year of double-digit rises in EPS with two more forecast, and that’s helped boost the share price by 235% in five years — though a 24% fall back since September last year has left us with a forward P/E of under 11, dropping to nine on 2017 expectations.

That alone sounds like bargain territory, but the big attraction is Galliford Try’s dividends. They’ve been galloping ahead, and it was only the soaring share price that kept last year’s yield down to 3.9%. The year saw a 28% rise in the annual payment, with the board stressing its “progressive and sustainable dividend policy” and telling us it now aims to maintain dividend cover at 1.5 times rather than its previous more cautious 1.7 times.

That bodes well for the yield of 5.6% forecast for this year, and the 7% on the cards for 2017, which would be covered sightly more than 1.5 times by forecast earnings.

Calling customers

Who’s Netcall (LSE: NET), you may well ask. Netcall produces telephone and data services for call centres and customer engagement, and it’s used by healthcare and public-sector organizations as well as the private sector. After a few years of very strong earning growth, we saw EPS fall back by 4% last year and there’s a further drop forecast for this year. That’s taken the shine of the share price a little, and despite a five-year rise of 184% to 49p, there’s been a 7% drop in the past 12 months.

But what I really like about Netcall is that it is generating oodles of cash. At the interim stage in December, net cash had risen to £15.2m, boosted by £1.82m in operating cashflow in the period. Oh, and there’s no debt.

With more cash than it needs to invest in its latest cloud computing developments, the firm is embarking on “an enhanced three-year dividend programme“, leading to a forecast dividend yield of 6.1% this year followed by 7.8% next.

But what does the head of The Motley Fool’s investing team think?

Should you invest £1,000 in AstraZeneca right now?

When investing expert Mark Rogers has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, the flagship Motley Fool Share Advisor newsletter he has run for nearly a decade has provided thousands of paying members with top stock recommendations from the UK and US markets.

And right now, Mark thinks there are 6 standout stocks that investors should consider buying. Want to see if AstraZeneca made the list?

See the 6 stocks

Should you invest, the value of your investment may rise or fall and your capital is at risk. Before investing, your individual circumstances should be assessed. Consider taking independent financial advice.

Alan Oscroft has no position in any shares mentioned. The Motley Fool UK has recommended Barclays. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.

More on Investing Articles

ISA Individual Savings Account
Investing Articles

Thinking of starting a Stocks and Shares ISA this April? Avoid these 4 mistakes!

A Stocks and Shares ISA can be a way for an investor to try and build wealth over the long…

Read more »

ISA coins
Investing Articles

Here’s how to build a £100k ISA starting with £5k today

Increase an ISA's value 20-fold? It need not just be the stuff of dreams, according to this writer -- though…

Read more »

A senior man and his wife holding hands walking up a hill on a footpath looking away from the camera at the view. The fishing village of Polperro is behind them.
Investing Articles

6.9% yield! I just added this share to my SIPP

In a turbulent stock market, our writer has been hunting for bargains to add to his SIPP. After a 31%…

Read more »

piggy bank, searching with binoculars
Investing Articles

With Rolls-Royce shares moving up again, is a £10 price target back on the horizon?

Rolls-Royce shares wobbled when President Trump dropped his tariff bombshell on us. But three weeks is a short time in…

Read more »

UK financial background: share prices and stock graph overlaid on an image of the Union Jack
Investing Articles

2 UK stocks to consider buying as the market sell-off continues

Stephen Wright thinks investors looking for opportunities might be able to take advantage of short-term weakness in some UK stocks.

Read more »

Closeup of "interest rates" text in a newspaper
Investing Articles

1 stock for passive income investors to consider buying before the Bank of England cuts interest rates

With the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee set to meet in May, passive income investors should think about how…

Read more »

Tesla building with tesla logo and two teslas in front
Investing Articles

Is Tesla about to become the ultimate passive income machine?

Our writer discusses whether Tesla stock might be worth him buying, just in case the EV giant enables passive income…

Read more »

Rolls-Royce's Pearl 10X engine series
Investing Articles

Will the Rolls-Royce share price collapse? Here’s what the charts say

The Rolls-Royce share price has pulled back following the announcement of Donald Trump’s trade policy, but supportive trends remain.

Read more »