Bought $6,000 of Santos stock in 2018? If so, here's how much dividend income you've earned

Let's dive into all the passive income provided by Santos shares over the last five years.

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Key points

  • The Santos share price has underperformed the ASX 200 slightly over the last five years, rising 20% in that time to trade at $7.18
  • Fortunately, the energy company has provided consistent dividends over that period
  • Each Santos share has yielded close to 92 cents in passive income since April 2018

The last few years have been volatile for the Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price.

The stock soared 48% between April 2018 and January 2020 before plummeting 65% in the months following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. While it's since rebounded, it's still trading below its previous highs.

The Santos share price has gained close to 20% over the last five years.

Indeed, a $,6,000 investment in the energy commodity producer in April 2018 likely would have seen one with 1,000 shares, having paid $6 apiece.

That parcel would be worth $7,180 today. The Santos share price last closed at $7.18.

For comparison, the S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) has gained 25% in that time.

But have the dividends offered by Santos over the last five years made up for the stock's slightly sluggish performance? Let's take a look.

All dividends paid to those holding Santos shares since 2018

Here are all the dividends offered to those invested in the ASX 200 energy giant since April 2018, rounded to the nearest tenth of a cent:

Santos dividends' pay dateTypeDividend amount
March 2023Final22.4 cents
September 2022Interim10.9 cents
March 2022Final11.8 cents
September 2021Interim7.7 cents
March 2021Final6.3 cents
September 2020Interim2.9 cents
March 2020Final7.6 cents
September 2019Interim8.9 cents
March 2019Final8.6 cents
September 2018Interim4.8 cents
Total: 91.9 cents

As the chart above shows, each Santos share has yielded around 91.9 cents of dividend income since April 2018.

That means our figurative parcel likely would have brought it $919 of passive income over its life.

At that rate, our total return on investment (ROI), considering both capital gains and dividends, comes to approximately 35%.

That may have been bolstered if an investor had compounded their dividends by reinvesting them in the company's stock.

Not to mention, most of Santos' dividends in that time have been franked, meaning they might have brought additional benefits at tax time.

Right now, Santos shares are trading with a 4.6% dividend yield.

Motley Fool contributor Brooke Cooper has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia's parent company Motley Fool Holdings Inc. has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool Australia has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. This article contains general investment advice only (under AFSL 400691). Authorised by Scott Phillips.

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