This Stock’s Dividend Has Risen 1.5X in 2 Years. Is It a Buy Here?

Core Insights - Disney announced a 50% increase in its annual dividend to $1.50 for fiscal Q4 2025, which led to a selloff in its stock [1] - The company had previously increased its dividends by 33% in December 2024, with semi-annual dividends rising from $0.30 to $0.75 since reinstating them in late 2023, marking a 1.5-fold increase [2] - Despite the recent hikes, Disney's dividend yield remains low at approximately 1.42%, comparable to the average S&P 500 Index [5] Dividend History - Disney suspended its dividends in 2020 and only restored them in late 2023, which was a longer suspension period compared to other companies like Ford and General Motors [3] - The initial semi-annual dividend of $0.30 is still below the pre-pandemic level of $0.88, indicating a slow recovery from the impacts of COVID-19 [4] Stock Performance - Disney has underperformed significantly, with a decline of over 6% in the last 10 years, contrasting sharply with the S&P 500 Index, which has more than tripled during the same period [6] - The stock is projected to underperform the S&P 500 Index again in 2025, continuing a trend observed in three of the last four years [6]