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Here's Why We're Wary Of Buying Strix Group's (LON:KETL) For Its Upcoming Dividend

Readers hoping to buy Strix Group Plc (LON:KETL) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. You can purchase shares before the 6th of May in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 2nd of June.

Strix Group's next dividend payment will be UK£0.052 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of UK£0.079 per share. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Strix Group has a trailing yield of approximately 2.8% on its current stock price of £2.82. 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 check whether the dividend payments are covered, and if earnings are growing.

Check out our latest analysis for Strix Group

Dividends are usually paid out of company profits, so if a company pays out more than it earned then its dividend is usually at greater risk of being cut. Strix Group paid out more than half (64%) of its earnings last year, which is a regular payout ratio for most companies. 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. Strix Group paid out more free cash flow than it generated - 111%, to be precise - last year, which we think is concerningly high. We're curious about why the company paid out more cash than it generated last year, since this can be one of the early signs that a dividend may be unsustainable.

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Strix Group paid out less in dividends than it reported in profits, but unfortunately it didn't generate enough cash to cover the dividend. Cash is king, as they say, and were Strix Group to repeatedly pay dividends that aren't well covered by cashflow, we would consider this a warning sign.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

historic-dividend
historic-dividend

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Businesses with shrinking earnings are tricky from a dividend perspective. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. So we're not too excited that Strix Group's earnings are down 2.1% a year over the past five years.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Since the start of our data, four years ago, Strix Group has lifted its dividend by approximately 2.9% 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.

The Bottom Line

Should investors buy Strix Group for the upcoming dividend? Strix Group had an average payout ratio, but its free cash flow was lower and earnings per share have been declining. Bottom line: Strix Group has some unfortunate characteristics that we think could lead to sub-optimal outcomes for dividend investors.

Although, if you're still interested in Strix Group and want to know more, you'll find it very useful to know what risks this stock faces. To that end, you should learn about the 4 warning signs we've spotted with Strix Group (including 1 which is concerning).

A common investment mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a list of promising 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.