Covered and raising — at a fuller payout. A 1.04% yield on a 46.4% payout is covered, but fuller than most broker cards: $0.70 a quarter, raised 7.6% in March 2026 from $0.65 for a 15th consecutive year of increases. Q2 2026 revenue grew 24.3% to $3.95 billion on the AssuredPartners acquisition, while brokerage margin contracted 80 basis points to 32.2% — growth is acquisition-led, and the payout leaves less retained than a lower-payout peer.
Key risk: Acquisition integration — the AssuredPartners deal drives growth but pressures margins until it turns accretive, and a softening P&C cycle can slow organic growth just as integration costs land.
Changes if: the payout pushes toward 65% of earnings, or brokerage margins keep contracting while acquisition spending continues. Margin direction, not the yield, is the tripwire here.
- ✓Payout-coverage check: 46.4% of earnings per MarketBeat — $2.80 indicated, with about 18.6% of cash flow going to dividends. Covered, but fuller than a low-payout payer, so less is retained.
- ✓Yield check: 1.04% indicated — $0.70/qtr × 4 at the $268.04 close on Oct. 23, 2026. Real, earned yield for a single stock, not a special or a return of capital.
- ✓Dividend growth check: 15 consecutive years of increases; the 2026 raise lifted the quarterly dividend 7.6%, from $0.65 to $0.70.
What this grade doesn't say: It screens the dividend only — covered, real, compounding. It says nothing about valuation or price: a well-covered payer can still be overpriced, and its price can still fall.