High Dividend Small Cap Stocks

A ‘Small-Cap’ stock has a share price that after being multiplied by the share float amounts to between $300 million and $2 billion in value. Several small-cap stocks currently have dividend values in excess of 10 percent.(1)

Defining what the ‘best’ among these small-cap stocks is a little more subjective. This is because stock performance can be evaluated using a wide range of indicators and metrics making the evaluation as good as the tools used to make the assessment. Having said that, here is a list of 5 stocks that issue high dividends.

1) Administradora de Fondos de Pen (PVD) 11.10 percent

When assessing the performance of the above small-cap company, one can begin with annual revenue. For example, Administradorea de Fondos de Pen had a huge jump in revenue between 2008-2009; more specifically from $278.233 million to $213.609 billion.(1) This kind of revenue jump could be  a one time jump or an indicator of the company’s capacity to generate growth. Annual revenue however, is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes ot performance evaluation.

2) Alon Holdings (BSI) 12.40 percent

12.40 percent may seem like an attractive dividend, and it is in relation to many stocks with lower dividends. Alon Holdings also maintained stable revenue during 2008 and 2009 and is in the black for a number of metrics including return on equity, profit margin and operating margin as of August, 2010. Keep in mind, share volume has been quite low for this company.

3) Anworth Mortgage Asset Corporation (ANH) 14.50 percent

Dividend yields as high as the one for this company make it potentially profitable if share values don’t decline more than the value made possible through the dividend. In a sense the high dividend is a hedge against the companies’ performance and share price. If the company can maintain its share price, a 14.50 percent dividend represents an interesting small-cap investment.

4) Apollo Investment Corporation (AINV) 11.20 percent

Apollo Investment Corporation is fairly valued at a an August 11, 2010 price of $9.36 per share if one considers book value an indicator of fair valuation. That is to say, as of this date, Apollo’s price to book values was .96. This could be good if the Forward Price to Earnings Ratio wasn’t quite so low at  8.35. Nevertheless, profit margin of 77.66% and operating margin of 66.40% may warrant a second look at this company.

5) BGC Partners, Inc. (BGCP) 10.30 percent.

To reduce the need for a dividend hedge, and increase the estimated probability of potential return on investment, one would do well to look at more than just an eye-catching dividend but the company itself. BGC Partners’ 52 week price range as of August  11, 2010 was between $3.72 and $6.97; this means if bought at its highest price and sold at its lowest , a little over 53% of  one’s capital investment would be lost. This would wipe out any benefits from a dividend so assuming a revisit of 52 week price lows doesn’t occur, a purchase of this company remains hedged at a $6.97 purchase price until the price reaches approximately $6.25.

Summary:

If an investor is looking at dividends alone, a high dividend could mean a good stock, but in most cases it is unwise to determine a company’s investment worth purely on dividend. Such being the case, other more fundamental factors become important in assessing what the best stocks with high dividends actually are. The companies in this article are not necessarily the best companies with high dividends, but may under some financial conditions present an investment opportunity that is among the best of small-cap companies with high dividends.

Source: (Date of record: 8.11.10)

1) http://yhoo.it/4sm5Xi (Yahoo finance)

Disclaimer: The above is not investment advice and the author of this article assumes no liability for indemnification resulting from decisions made with and of the information contained herein.