Yahoo Finance Balfour Beatty (LON:BBY) Is Increasing Its Dividend To £0.035
Balfour Beatty plc's (LON:BBY) dividend will be increasing from last year's payment of the same period to £0.035 on 5th of December. This takes the annual payment to 2.9% of the current stock price, which unfortunately is below what the industry is paying.
See our latest analysis for Balfour Beatty
Balfour Beatty's Earnings Easily Cover The Distributions
While yield is important, another factor to consider about a company's dividend is whether the current payout levels are feasible. However, Balfour Beatty's earnings easily cover the dividend. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.
The next year is set to see EPS grow by 16.9%. If the dividend continues on this path, the payout ratio could be 32% by next year, which we think can be pretty sustainable going forward.
Dividend Volatility
Although the company has a long dividend history, it has been cut at least once in the last 10 years. The annual payment during the last 10 years was £0.138 in 2012, and the most recent fiscal year payment was £0.095. The dividend has shrunk at around 3.7% a year during that period. A company that decreases its dividend over time generally isn't what we are looking for.
The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow
With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to evaluate if earnings per share is growing, which could point to a growing dividend in the future. Balfour Beatty has seen EPS rising for the last five years, at 56% per annum. Earnings have been growing rapidly, and with a low payout ratio we think that the company could turn out to be a great dividend stock.
We Really Like Balfour Beatty's Dividend
Overall, we think this could be an attractive income stock, and it is only getting better by paying a higher dividend this year. Earnings are easily covering distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. All in all, this checks a lot of the boxes we look for when choosing an income stock.
Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. Case in point: We've spotted 3 warning signs for Balfour Beatty (of which 1 shouldn't be ignored!) you should know about. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield 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.
Join A Paid User Research Session
You’ll receive a US$30 Amazon Gift card for 1 hour of your time while helping us build better investing tools for the individual investors like yourself. Sign up here
