Manulife Financial Corporation (TSE:MFC) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 3 days. Investors can purchase shares before the 20th of November in order to be eligible for this dividend, which will be paid on the 21st of December.
Manulife Financial's next dividend payment will be CA$0.28 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of CA$1.12 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Manulife Financial has a trailing yield of 5.4% on the current share price of CA$20.8. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Manulife Financial'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 Manulife Financial
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. That's why it's good to see Manulife Financial paying out a modest 41% of its earnings.
Generally speaking, the lower a company's payout ratios, the more resilient its dividend usually is.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
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. This is why it's a relief to see Manulife Financial earnings per share are up 7.8% per annum over the last five years.
Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Manulife Financial has delivered an average of 8.0% 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.
Should investors buy Manulife Financial for the upcoming dividend? It has been growing its earnings per share somewhat in recent years, although it reinvests more than half its earnings in the business, which could suggest there are some growth projects that have not yet reached fruition. Manulife Financial ticks a lot of boxes for us from a dividend perspective, and we think these characteristics should mark the company as deserving of further attention.
So while Manulife Financial looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. In terms of investment risks, we've identified 1 warning sign with Manulife Financial and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
If you're in the market for dividend stocks, we recommend checking our list of top 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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