Yahoo Finance Is It Smart To Buy Alcoa Corporation (NYSE:AA) Before It Goes Ex-Dividend?
Alcoa Corporation (NYSE:AA) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be one business day before the record date which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is important because any transaction on a stock needs to have been settled before the record date in order to be eligible for a dividend. Thus, you can purchase Alcoa's shares before the 8th of August in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 25th of August.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.10 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$0.40 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Alcoa has a trailing yield of 0.8% on the current stock price of $48.34. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Alcoa's dividend is reliable and sustainable. That's why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is growing.
Check out our latest analysis for Alcoa
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Alcoa paid out just 5.7% of its profit last year, which we think is conservatively low and leaves plenty of margin for unexpected circumstances. A useful secondary check can be to evaluate whether Alcoa generated enough free cash flow to afford its dividend. Luckily it paid out just 4.9% of its free cash flow last year.
It's encouraging to see that the dividend is covered by both profit and cash flow. This generally suggests the dividend is sustainable, as long as earnings don't drop precipitously.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. Fortunately for readers, Alcoa's earnings per share have been growing at 18% a year for the past five years. Earnings per share have been growing rapidly and the company is retaining a majority of its earnings within the business. Fast-growing businesses that are reinvesting heavily are enticing from a dividend perspective, especially since they can often increase the payout ratio later.
Given that Alcoa has only been paying a dividend for a year, there's not much of a past history to draw insight from.
To Sum It Up
Is Alcoa an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? We love that Alcoa 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. It's a promising combination that should mark this company worthy of closer attention.
On that note, you'll want to research what risks Alcoa is facing. For example, Alcoa has 2 warning signs (and 1 which can't be ignored) we think you should know about.
A common investing mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a full list of high-yield dividend stocks.
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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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