'Total yield': A new way to hunt down a decent income

When looking for shares that pay a decent income, it's not enough to go on dividend yield alone. Instead, you should consider the 'total yield'. Tim Bennett explains.

With interest rates so low, most of us would like to get a decent income from our stocks. But it's a mistake to just look at dividend yield, Chris Brightman of Research Affiliates tells Fortune. Instead, you should consider the total yield'. So what is it, and why does it matter?

The trouble with dividend yields

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up

Tim graduated with a history degree from Cambridge University in 1989 and, after a year of travelling, joined the financial services firm Ernst and Young in 1990, qualifying as a chartered accountant in 1994.

He then moved into financial markets training, designing and running a variety of courses at graduate level and beyond for a range of organisations including the Securities and Investment Institute and UBS. He joined MoneyWeek in 2007.