Yahoo Finance COG Financial Services' (ASX:COG) Upcoming Dividend
Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you're one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that COG Financial Services Limited ( ASX:COG ) is about to go ex-dividend in just 4 days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date, which is the cut-off date for shareholders to be present on the company's books to be eligible for a dividend payment. The ex-dividend date is of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade takes at least two business day to settle. In other words, investors can purchase COG Financial Services' shares before the 21st of September in order to be eligible for the dividend, which will be paid on the 21st of October.
The company's next dividend payment will be AU$0.048 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed AU$0.083 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, COG Financial Services has a trailing yield of 4.6% on the current stock price of A$1.8. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.
See our latest analysis for COG Financial Services
Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. It paid out 76% of its earnings as dividends last year, which is not unreasonable, but limits reinvestment in the business and leaves the dividend vulnerable to a business downturn. It could become a concern if earnings started to decline.
We should note, the company's preferred measure of dividend coverage is using Net Profit After Tax Before Ammortisation or NPATA. On this basis the company only paid out 62% of its earnings, and its policy is not to exceed 70% of NPATA.
Generally speaking, the lower a company's payout ratios, the more resilient its dividend usually is.
Click here to see how much of its profit COG Financial Services paid out over the last 12 months.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Businesses with shrinking earnings are tricky from a dividend perspective. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, COG Financial Services's earnings are up from 5 years ago, which is a positive.
Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. In the last two years, COG Financial Services has lifted its dividend by approximately 134% a year on average. Growing the dividend payout ratio while earnings are declining can deliver nice returns for a while, but it's always worth checking for when the company can't increase the payout ratio any more - because then the music stops.
To Sum It Up
Has COG Financial Services got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? We're not overly enthused to see COG Financial Services's earnings in retreat over the last few years, but earnings have improved lately. For now the dividend's sustainability looks decent.
So if you're still interested in COG Financial Services, you should be well informed on some of the risks facing this stock. To help with this, we've discovered 3 warning signs for COG Financial Services that you should be aware of before investing in their shares.
If you're in the market for strong dividend payers, we recommend checking our selection of top dividend stocks.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
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