Earning £100 a week in passive income from UK shares is a realistic goal for beginner investors. It just takes a bit of time and dedication.
By building a portfolio of reliable shares and reinvesting the dividends, the compounding returns can speed up the process.
Here’s how I’d think investors should go about it.
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Setting the target
To generate £100 per week – or £5,200 per year – from dividends, the size of the investment depends on the average dividend yield.
For example:
- A 5% average yield requires an investment of £104,000.
- A 6% average yield requires £86,667.
- A 7% average yield requires £74,285.
While these figures might seem high, remember that regular contributions and reinvesting dividends can help accelerate growth.
By investing £200 a month into a 7% portfolio and reinvesting the dividends, it would take less than 17 years to reach £74,285.
When factoring in any additional price appreciation, that time could be reduced even further.
Picking the right dividend stocks
When researching dividend stocks for an income portfolio, it pays to carefully evaluate the following metrics.
Yield
First, the dividend yield. It’s critical to find a balance between a high yield and sustainability. A yield above 5% is attractive but note that this can make sustainability less reliable.
Growth
It’s also important to ensure the company has a long track record of dividend growth. Increasing dividends not only affirms a dedication to shareholders but also provides inflation protection.
Health
Check the financial health of the company and make sure its balance sheet is solid. It should have consistent earnings with sufficient cash flow and manageable debt levels.
Cover
The dividend cover ratio is calculated by dividing earnings per share by dividends per share. It should ideally be above 1.5, meaning the company can easily afford to cover its payouts.
UK shares to consider
When looking at stocks for a dividend-focused portfolio, there are many good options in retail, utilities and financial services.
National Grid, for example, is the UK’s largest regulated utility company. It has a 5.3% yield and a 20+ year track record of increasing payments.
Global consumer goods giant Unilever performs well even through economic downturns. It only has a yield of 3.3% but is a consistent and reliable payer.
Lloyds Banking Group is another popular choice, with a yield usually around 5%. Its payment track record has been a bit sketchy since 2008 but improved lately.
The highest-yielding stock on the FTSE 100 is Phoenix Group (LSE: PHNX), a specialist life insurance and pension provider. Recently, its yield has risen above 10% but historically, it averages 7%.
It has a long history of stable payouts and dividend growth, climbing from 31.8p per share in 2011 to 52.6p in 2023.
Although I like the stock, its financials could be better. In 2023, it reported a £138m loss after revenue declined by 50%. This was impacted by £6.14bn in policy claims in 2022.
If it misses expectations in next month’s earnings call, the share price could take a further hit. It’s already down 25% in five years so the company needs a win.
Overall, I think its worth considering as the UK’s ageing population is ramping up demand for retirement and pension products. Analysts remain optimistic, forecasting growth of 11.5% on average in the coming 12 months.
