Consumer discretionary dividend payout ratios

48 companies, computed from their own SEC filings. 19 of them answer differently by 20 points or more depending on which basis you divide by.

What ordinary looks like here

On the basis each company’s own filings make applicable, the median consumer discretionary company pays out 34.9%. Half sit between 19.7% and 71.2%. Across all 532 companies here the median is 41.9% — 7.0 points less than the site as a whole.

Which basis applies, and to how many

Not a choice — it is what each company’s filings support.

free cash flow 44
operating cash flow 2

Where the bases disagree most

The same dividend, a different answer. These are the widest gaps in consumer discretionary.

Whirlpool (WHR) 306.5 pts
CVS Health (CVS) 159.4 pts
Upbound Group (UPBD) 96.0 pts
Starbucks (SBUX) 91.9 pts
Dick'S Sporting Goods (DKS) 76.5 pts

Lowest payout

Highest payout

Whirlpool 370.4%
Starbucks 113.5%
Nike 110.2%
Dick'S Sporting Goods 103.4%
Amcor 97.2%

Common questions

What is a good dividend payout ratio for a consumer discretionary company?

Measured on the basis its own filings support, the median here is 34.9%, with half between 19.7% and 71.2%. That is the empirical answer for this sector rather than a rule of thumb, and it is the only comparison that means anything — a figure that is ordinary in one sector is stretched in another.

Which measure should a consumer discretionary company be judged on?

44 of the 46 measured here are read on free cash flow, because that is what their filings support. Each company’s page shows every basis it can be measured on and marks the one that applies.

Where do these numbers come from?

Each company’s own annual filing, read out of SEC XBRL. Every page names the accession number its figures came from and links it to EDGAR, so any figure here can be checked against the source.

All 48 companies

What a dividend payout ratio measures, and why one threshold does not fit every sector.

Ticker	Company	Basis	Yield	Spread	Rating
WHR	Whirlpool	FCF	—	306.5	0
CVS	CVS Health	FCF	—	159.4	29
UPBD	Upbound Group	FCF	—	96.0	35
SBUX	Starbucks	FCF	—	91.9	11
DKS	Dick'S Sporting Goods	FCF	—	76.5	3
URI	United Rentals	FCF	—	65.7	36
AMCR	Amcor	FCF	—	53.2	26
TNL	Travel & Leisure	FCF	—	41.8	70
TGT	Target	FCF	—	41.1	14
QSR	Restaurant Brands International	FCF	—	40.9	45
TSCO	Tractor Supply	FCF	—	36.0	45
BBY	Best Buy	FCF	—	34.6	25
NKE	Nike	FCF	—	32.6	2
WMT	Walmart	FCF	—	32.2	48
TKO	TKO Group Holdings	OCF	—	27.8	60
PVH	PVH	FCF	—	27.7	70
DRI	Darden Restaurants	FCF	—	24.5	45
MCD	Mcdonalds	FCF	—	22.7	48
SUNB	Sunbelt Rentals Holdings	FCF	—	22.7	61
YUMC	Yum China Holdings	FCF	—	17.9	35
DDS	Dillard'S	FCF	—	17.8	6
M	Macy's	FCF	—	17.7	67
LVS	Las Vegas Sands	FCF	—	17.4	50
HD	Home Depot	FCF	—	16.3	28
RUSHA	RUSH Enterprises Inc \Tx\	FCF	—	15.9	69
EDU	New Oriental Education & Technology Group	FCF	—	15.2	71
SCI	Service Corp International	FCF	—	14.7	55
LOW	Lowes Companies	FCF	—	13.4	58
GAP	GAP	FCF	—	11.9	60
YUM	YUM Brands	FCF	—	11.9	62
QSP	Restaurant Brands International Limited Part	FCF	—	11.8	45
COST	Costco Wholesale	FCF	—	11.5	65
TJX	TJX Companies	FCF	—	10.7	45
RL	Ralph Lauren	FCF	—	10.3	43
DIS	Walt Disney	FCF	—	7.9	72
SHW	Sherwin Williams	FCF	—	7.9	58
ROST	Ross Stores	FCF	—	7.1	66
WSM	Williams Sonoma	FCF	—	5.9	42
CASY	Caseys General Stores	FCF	—	5.6	80
TPR	Tapestry	FCF	—	5.5	71
MAR	Marriott International	FCF	—	5.4	46
HAS	Hasbro	FCF	—	3.4	44
HLT	Hilton Worldwide Holdings	FCF	—	3.1	77
AER	AerCap Holdings N.V.	OCF	—	1.6	56
HRI	Herc Holdings	FCF	—	1.4	57
OMC	Omnicom Group	FCF	—	1.0	75
EQPT	EquipmentShare.com	—	—	—	—
VAC	Marriott Vacations Worldwide	—	—	—	12