The Financial Post reports in its Tuesday edition that Enbridge might want to rethink its dividend policy. The Post's Jonathan Ratner writes in the Trading Desk column that Enbridge has been a consistently good performer, but it has failed to outperform its peers despite superior growth and a lower risk profile. Scotiabank analyst Matthew Akman says Enbridge has produced sector-leading dividend and cash flow per share growth in the past five years, yet the stock has traded in line with the group. Enbridge's compound annual dividend growth rate of more than 12 per cent compares with about 7 per cent for the group as a whole in the past three years and 5 per cent in the past five. Mr. Akman says: "We can only attribute the lack of concerted outperformance in Enbridge to a low payout policy. ... Enbridge raised its payout ratio in 2005 and it is time to revisit that ratio again." Mr. Akman notes the yield spread between Enbridge and its Canadian peers has compressed to 1 per cent from 7 per cent five years ago. Even though the company has grown earnings and dividends much faster than the competition, its share-price performance has disappointed. Mr. Akman rates Enbridge "outperform," with a $70 share target.