The dividend yield is one of the first figures an income-oriented investor looks at. A high percentage promises a faster return on capital in the form of cash, regardless of where the stock price happens to be heading, and in an environment of higher interest rates, many companies in the financial sector can actually benefit from more expensive funding. The catch is that the yield figure alone tells us almost nothing.

Dividend yield is one of the most closely watched metrics investors use to select stocks for income-oriented portfolios. The higher the yield, the faster capital returns in the form of cash, regardless of whether the stock price is currently rising or falling. Moreover, the current environment of higher interest rates plays into this approach, as many financial firms are able to benefit from more expensive funding, whether in the form of higher returns on invested reserves or through higher-cost lending.

The financial sector, in particular, has traditionally been a source…