T Payout Ratio: current value, 10-year range and year-by-year history
Cash & Leverage
Payout Ratio History
T Payout Ratio by year
Yearly range of T’s payout ratio from 2016 to 2026. Over the full period it ranged from 36.4% to 96.0%, averaging 57.3%.
| Year | Low | Average | High | Year-end |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 43.7% | 44.3% | 45.0% | 43.7% |
| 2025 | 39.9% | 40.7% | 41.1% | 41.0% |
| 2024 | 36.4% | 39.3% | 43.2% | 43.2% |
| 2023 | 39.0% | 46.0% | 61.1% | 39.0% |
| 2022 | 76.6% | 86.5% | 96.0% | 83.4% |
| 2021 | 52.9% | 56.7% | 60.8% | 58.9% |
| 2020 | 53.1% | 54.7% | 56.8% | 54.4% |
| 2019 | 50.5% | 52.6% | 57.2% | 51.2% |
| 2018 | 64.2% | 70.9% | 78.0% | 64.2% |
| 2017 | 67.0% | 69.4% | 71.7% | 69.8% |
| 2016 | 66.6% | 67.6% | 68.6% | 66.6% |
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What fraction of free cash flow is paid out as dividends. More reliable than the earnings-based payout ratio because cash is harder to manipulate through accounting choices. Low ratio = room to grow the dividend and absorb an earnings dip. High ratio = dividend is consuming most of the cash generated.
TTM Dividends Per Share / (TTM FCF ÷ Shares) × 100%A steadily rising FCF payout ratio warrants scrutiny only if FCF itself is flat or falling — that means the company is paying out a larger slice of shrinking cash. A high but stable ratio in a capital-light business (e.g. consumer staples) can be perfectly sustainable.
- FCF can be lumpy: large one-off capex or working-capital swings distort a single year. Look at the multi-year trend rather than any single data point.
- Utilities and REITs naturally sustain 60–90% FCF payout ratios; industrials and tech companies typically run 20–50%. Always compare to sector context.
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