Imperial Brands PLC (LON:IMB) Pays A UK£0.49 Dividend In Just Two Days

Imperial Brands PLC (LON:IMB) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in two days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. It is important to be aware of the ex-dividend date because any trade on the stock needs to have been settled on or before the record date. Thus, you can purchase Imperial Brands' shares before the 24th of November in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 30th of December.

The company's next dividend payment will be UK£0.49 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of UK£1.41 per share. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Imperial Brands stock has a trailing yield of around 6.7% on the current share price of £21.21. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Imperial Brands's dividend is reliable and sustainable. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

See our latest analysis for Imperial Brands

Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. It paid out 85% of its earnings as dividends last year, which is not unreasonable, but limits reinvestment in the business and leaves the dividend vulnerable to a business downturn. We'd be worried about the risk of a drop in earnings. 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. Fortunately, it paid out only 45% 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. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at Imperial Brands, with earnings per share up 2.7% on average over the last five years. A payout ratio of 85% looks like a tacit signal from management that reinvestment opportunities in the business are low. In line with limited earnings growth in recent years, this is not the most appealing combination.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Imperial Brands has delivered an average of 4.0% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments. We're glad to see dividends rising alongside earnings over a number of years, which may be a sign the company intends to share the growth with shareholders.

To Sum It Up

Has Imperial Brands got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? While earnings per share growth has been modest, Imperial Brands's dividend payouts are around an average level; without a sharp change in earnings we feel that the dividend is likely somewhat sustainable. Pleasingly the company paid out a conservatively low percentage of its free cash flow. To summarise, Imperial Brands looks okay on this analysis, although it doesn't appear a stand-out opportunity.

So while Imperial Brands looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Our analysis shows 3 warning signs for Imperial Brands and you should be aware of them before buying any shares.

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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