Why Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) Is A Dividend Rockstar

There is a lot to be liked about Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) as an income stock. It has paid dividends over the past 10 years. The stock currently pays out a dividend yield of 4.2%, and has a market cap of US$328.2b. Should it have a place in your portfolio? Let's take a look at Exxon Mobil in more detail.

View our latest analysis for Exxon Mobil

5 questions I ask before picking a dividend stock

Whenever I am looking at a potential dividend stock investment, I always check these five metrics:

• Is it the top 25% annual dividend yield payer?
• Has it paid dividend every year without dramatically reducing payout in the past?
• Has dividend per share amount increased over the past?
• Is is able to pay the current rate of dividends from its earnings?
• Will it be able to continue to payout at the current rate in the future?

How well does Exxon Mobil fit our criteria?

The company currently pays out 64% of its earnings as a dividend, according to its trailing twelve-month data, which means that the dividend is covered by earnings. In the near future, analysts are predicting lower payout ratio of 57%, leading to a dividend yield of 4.4%. However, EPS should increase to $5.3, meaning that the lower payout ratio does not necessarily implicate a lower dividend payment.

When considering the sustainability of dividends, it is also worth checking the cash flow of a company. Cash flow is important because companies with strong cash flow can usually sustain higher payout ratios.

If there is one thing that you want to be reliable in your life, it's dividend stocks and their constant income stream. XOM has increased its DPS from $1.6 to $3.28 in the past 10 years. It has also been paying out dividend consistently during this time, as you'd expect for a company increasing its dividend levels. These are all positive signs of a great, reliable dividend stock.

Relative to peers, Exxon Mobil produces a yield of 4.2%, which is high for Oil and Gas stocks.

Next Steps:

With these dividend metrics in mind, I definitely rank Exxon Mobil as a strong income stock, and is worth further research for anyone who considers dividends an important part of their portfolio strategy. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, I recommend taking sufficient time to understand its core business and determine whether the company and its investment properties suit your overall goals. I've put together three important aspects you should look at:

1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for XOM’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for XOM’s outlook.
2. Valuation: What is XOM worth today? Even if the stock is a cash cow, it's not worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether XOM is currently mispriced by the market.
3. Other Dividend Rockstars: Are there better dividend payers with stronger fundamentals out there? Check out our free list of these great stocks here.

To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.

The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.

Simply Wall St analyst Simply Wall St and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.