Yahoo Finance There's A Lot To Like About L3Harris Technologies' (NYSE:LHX) Upcoming US$1.02 Dividend
Readers hoping to buy L3Harris Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LHX) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. The ex-dividend date occurs one day before the record date which is the day on which shareholders need to be on the company's books in order to receive a 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 L3Harris Technologies' shares before the 28th of May in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 15th of June.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$1.02 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$4.08 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that L3Harris Technologies has a trailing yield of 1.9% on the current share price of $216.04. 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.
See our latest analysis for L3Harris Technologies
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. L3Harris Technologies is paying out an acceptable 55% of its profit, a common payout level among most companies. That said, even highly profitable companies sometimes might not generate enough cash to pay the dividend, which is why we should always check if the dividend is covered by cash flow. Fortunately, it paid out only 30% of its free cash flow in the past 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?
Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. Fortunately for readers, L3Harris Technologies's earnings per share have been growing at 15% a year for the past five years. L3Harris Technologies is paying out a bit over half its earnings, which suggests the company is striking a balance between reinvesting in growth, and paying dividends. Given the quick rate of earnings per share growth and current level of payout, there may be a chance of further dividend increases in the future.
Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. In the past 10 years, L3Harris Technologies has increased its dividend at approximately 15% a year on average. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.
The Bottom Line
Is L3Harris Technologies worth buying for its dividend? We like L3Harris Technologies's growing earnings per share and the fact that - while its payout ratio is around average - it paid out a lower percentage of its cash flow. Overall we think this is an attractive combination and worthy of further research.
In light of that, while L3Harris Technologies has an appealing dividend, it's worth knowing the risks involved with this stock. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for L3Harris Technologies you should know about.
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.
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