Is It Smart To Buy McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) Before It Goes Ex-Dividend?
McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in four days. You will need to purchase shares before the 2nd of October to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 19th of October.
McCormick’s next dividend payment will be US$0.62 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of US$2.48 per share. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, McCormick has a trailing yield of approximately 1.3% on its current stock price of $191.57. 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 McCormick
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable – hardly an ideal situation. Fortunately McCormick’s payout ratio is modest, at just 42% of profit. 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. Thankfully its dividend payments took up just 40% of the free cash flow it generated, which is a comfortable payout ratio.
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 earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. Fortunately for readers, McCormick’s earnings per share have been growing at 11% a year for the past five years. Earnings per share are growing rapidly and the company is keeping more than half of its earnings within the business; an attractive combination which could suggest the company is focused on reinvesting to grow earnings further. Fast-growing businesses that are reinvesting heavily are enticing from a dividend perspective, especially since they can often increase the payout ratio later.
Many investors will assess a company’s dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. McCormick has delivered an average of 9.1% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments. It’s encouraging to see the company lifting dividends while earnings are growing, suggesting at least some corporate interest in rewarding shareholders.
Final Takeaway
Has McCormick got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? McCormick has been growing earnings at a rapid rate, and has a conservatively low payout ratio, implying that it is reinvesting heavily in its business; a sterling combination. It’s a promising combination that should mark this company worthy of closer attention.
So while McCormick looks good from a dividend perspective, it’s always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. For example, we’ve found 1 warning sign for McCormick that we recommend you consider before investing in the business.
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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