Flight Centre Travel Group Ltd (ASX: FLT) shares closed the day around 1% lower on Wednesday, at $10.12 a piece.
The shares have now fallen around 33% so far in 2026 and they're roughly 15% lower than 12 months ago.
The company has faced several headwinds as conflict in the Middle East continues to disrupt global travel plans. Its latest FY26 result was also weaker than expected, including a decline in underlying profit before tax which came in around 2% below market expectations. Its leisure division missed consensus by about 8%.
The company also expects travel to be subdued through the first half of FY27 while the conflict still goes unresolved. Flight Centre expects corporate earnings to be more heavily weighted toward the second half, with first-half profit likely to come in below last year.
But the good news about the ASX travel stock is it offers investors more than just capital gains. It also dishes out a steady passive income stream by way of divided payments.
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What makes Flight Centre shares an attractive passive income option?
The business is large in scale, with a huge global reach across both corporate and leisure travel segments.
The company's strong position in the global corporate travel market means it is able to earn a diverse but consistent earnings stream which it can then pass on to shareholders.
How many Flight Centre shares can I buy with $5,000?
Using the $10.12 share price at the time of writing, a $5,000 investment will buy approximately 494 shares.
What dividend does the travel company pay its shareholders?
Flight Centre has a history of paying fully franked dividends twice per year, dating back to 2004.
But there was an exception during the Covid-19 pandemic years. Flight Centre did not pay dividends in 2020, 2021, or 2022 due to widespread lockdowns, closed international and domestic borders, and limited travel.
The company resumed its dividend payments in 2023.
Flight Centre is expected to pay its shareholders a final FY26 fully-franked 30-cent dividend on Friday. This brings the FY26 total dividend to 42 cents per share.
At the time of writing, that translates to a dividend yield of around 4.1% for the year.
According to Commsec data, the travel company is expected to pay 48 cents per share in FY27. It is then forecasted to pay 52.3 cents per share in FY28, and 56.5 cents per share in FY29.
Using the share price at the time of writing, that translates to forward dividend yields of around 4.7%, 5.2%, and 5.6% respectively.
Ok, so what could I earn off a $5,000 investment in FY27?
If Flight Centre pays shareholders the expected 48-cent fully-franked dividend in FY27, then a $5,000 investment (or 494 shares) would generate around $237.12 in FY27.
Assuming the company then pays the 52.3 cent and 56.5 cent dividend forecasted for FY28 and FY29, investors could earn a passive income of around $258.36 and $279.11 off the same $5,000 investment.
