Yahoo Finance Here's What We Like About B&M European Value Retail's (LON:BME) Upcoming Dividend
It looks like B&M European Value Retail S.A. (LON:BME) is about to go ex-dividend in the next 3 days. You will need to purchase shares before the 19th of November to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 4th of December.
The upcoming dividend for B&M European Value Retail will put a total of UK£0.29 per share in shareholders' pockets, up from last year's total dividends of UK£0.081. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. As a result, readers should always check whether B&M European Value Retail has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.
Check out our latest analysis for B&M European Value Retail
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. B&M European Value Retail paid out a comfortable 33% of its profit last year. 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. The good news is it paid out just 12% of its free cash flow in the last year.
It's positive to see that B&M European Value Retail'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 the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
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. It's encouraging to see B&M European Value Retail has grown its earnings rapidly, up 50% a year for the past five years. B&M European Value Retail is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow, while simultaneously growing earnings per share at a rapid clip. Companies with growing earnings and low payout ratios are often the best long-term dividend stocks, as the company can both grow its earnings and increase the percentage of earnings that it pays out, essentially multiplying the dividend.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. B&M European Value Retail has delivered 28% dividend growth per year on average over the past six years. Both per-share earnings and dividends have both been growing rapidly in recent times, which is great to see.
To Sum It Up
Has B&M European Value Retail got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? We love that B&M European Value Retail is growing earnings per share while simultaneously paying out a low percentage of both its earnings and cash flow. These characteristics suggest the company is reinvesting in growing its business, while the conservative payout ratio also implies a reduced risk of the dividend being cut in the future. There's a lot to like about B&M European Value Retail, and we would prioritise taking a closer look at it.
With that in mind, a critical part of thorough stock research is being aware of any risks that stock currently faces. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 1 warning sign with B&M European Value Retail and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
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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