There's A Lot To Like About CountPlus' (ASX:CUP) Upcoming AU$0.013 Dividend

Readers hoping to buy CountPlus Limited (ASX:CUP) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. You will need to purchase shares before the 24th of September to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 14th of October.

CountPlus's next dividend payment will be AU$0.013 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of AU$0.025 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, CountPlus stock has a trailing yield of around 2.4% on the current share price of A$1.025. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! So we need to investigate whether CountPlus can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

View our latest analysis for CountPlus

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. CountPlus paid out just 17% of its profit last year, which we think is conservatively low and leaves plenty of margin for unexpected circumstances. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. Thankfully its dividend payments took up just 25% of the free cash flow it generated, which is a comfortable payout ratio.

It's positive to see that CountPlus's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

Click here to see how much of its profit CountPlus paid out over the last 12 months.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at CountPlus, with earnings per share up 9.7% on average over the last five years. Management have been reinvested more than half of the company's earnings within the business, and the company has been able to grow earnings with this retained capital. We think this is generally an attractive combination, as dividends can grow through a combination of earnings growth and or a higher payout ratio over time.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. CountPlus has seen its dividend decline 11% per annum on average over the past 10 years, which is not great to see. CountPlus is a rare case where dividends have been decreasing at the same time as earnings per share have been improving. It's unusual to see, and could point to unstable conditions in the core business, or more rarely an intensified focus on reinvesting profits.

Final Takeaway

Is CountPlus worth buying for its dividend? Earnings per share have been growing moderately, and CountPlus is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow as dividends, which is an attractive combination as it suggests the company is investing in growth. We would prefer to see earnings growing faster, but the best dividend stocks over the long term typically combine significant earnings per share growth with a low payout ratio, and CountPlus is halfway there. It's a promising combination that should mark this company worthy of closer attention.

So while CountPlus looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Our analysis shows 4 warning signs for CountPlus that we strongly recommend you have a look at before investing in the company.

We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. 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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