“Only buy something that you’d be perfectly happy to hold if the market shut down for 10 years.”
— Warren Buffett
HP Inc stock has delivered a strong 10-year total return for investors who bought in 2016 and reinvested dividends. Using the return profile shown below, a $10,000 investment in HP Inc (NYSE: HPQ) on 09/01/2016 would have grown to $29,022.62 by 08/31/2026. That outcome reflects both share price appreciation and the compounding effect of dividend reinvestment, which is essential when evaluating long-term equity returns.
This type of analysis is useful because it separates short-term market noise from the economics of long-term ownership. For dividend-paying stocks such as HPQ, total return often differs materially from price return alone, particularly over a full decade.
HPQ 10-Year Return Summary
| Start date: | 09/01/2016 |
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| End date: | 08/31/2026 | ||||
| Start price/share: | $14.50 | ||||
| End price/share: | $30.02 | ||||
| Starting shares: | 689.66 | ||||
| Ending shares: | 967.15 | ||||
| Dividends reinvested/share: | $8.54 | ||||
| Total return: | 190.34% | ||||
| Average annual return: | 11.24% | ||||
| Starting investment: | $10,000.00 | ||||
| Ending investment: | $29,022.62 | ||||
Over the full holding period, HPQ generated a 190.34% total return, equivalent to an annualized return of 11.24%. In practical terms, the investment nearly tripled, rising from $10,000 to $29,022.62 as of 08/31/2026. [These numbers were computed with the Dividend Channel DRIP Returns Calculator.]
What Drove HP Inc’s 10-Year Total Return?
The return came from two sources:
- Share price appreciation: the stock price increased from $14.50 to $30.02.
- Reinvested dividends: HP Inc paid $8.54 per share in cumulative dividends over the period, and those dividends were assumed to be reinvested into additional shares.
That reinvestment effect is visible in the share count. An initial 689.66 shares grew to 967.15 shares by the end of the period. In other words, even without adding new capital, the position accumulated meaningfully more shares over time because cash distributions were put back to work.
For long-term dividend stocks, this distinction matters. Looking only at the stock price would understate the economic return earned by a shareholder who stayed invested and reinvested distributions as they were paid.
HPQ Dividend Yield and Yield on Cost
Based on the most recent annualized dividend rate of $1.20 per share, HPQ has a current dividend yield of approximately 4.00% using the $30.02 ending share price shown above.
Another useful lens is yield on cost, which compares the current annual dividend to the original purchase price rather than the current market price. Using a $1.20 annualized dividend and the 2016 purchase price of $14.50, the yield on cost works out to roughly 8.28%.
That figure does not mean the stock currently yields 8.28% in the market. Instead, it shows how the income stream has scaled relative to the original entry price. For long-term holders of dividend-paying equities, yield on cost can help illustrate how a patient holding period may improve the income productivity of invested capital.
Key Takeaways From the HP Inc Example
- Total return is the relevant measure: price change alone does not capture the full shareholder outcome.
- Dividend reinvestment compounds over time: periodic cash payouts can materially increase ending share count and ending value.
- Time horizon matters: a full decade can produce a very different result than a short-term snapshot.
- Entry price influences future income metrics: yield on cost can rise meaningfully when dividends are maintained or increased over time.
HP Inc’s 10-year performance illustrates how a mature, cash-generative company can create substantial shareholder value through a combination of distributions and price appreciation. It also underscores a broader point: when evaluating a long-term equity holding, the most informative question is not simply where the stock traded at the start and end dates, but how much total capital the investment ultimately produced.
“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” — Benjamin Franklin
