Like almost all of its banking sector peers, the Westpac Banking Corp (ASX: WBC) share price has come under a spot of selling pressure in the last couple of weeks.
Whilst embattled rival Commonwealth Bank of Australia (ASX: CBA) has certainly fallen the most, Westpac isn't far behind with a decline of over 4%.
Does this make it a buy?
I think it does, especially if you're an income investor in search of dividends.
In my opinion, the trailing fully franked 6% dividend that Westpac's shares provide is hard to turn down in the current interest rate environment.
Especially given how a number of key dividend payers, such as Telstra Corporation Ltd (ASX: TLS), have been forced to make cuts to their own.
Not only is Westpac's dividend far above the market-average, but I believe it has the potential to grow over the next couple of years.
Whilst the bank levy will undoubtedly weigh heavily on the bank's results, I feel Westpac's out of cycle rate rises has put it in a position to grow both its earnings and dividend at a reasonably steady rate.
Overall, I think Westpac would be a solid addition to most portfolios that are not already overweight with the banks.
