Yahoo Finance Challenger Limited (ASX:CGF) Looks Interesting, And It's About To Pay A Dividend
It looks like Challenger Limited (ASX:CGF) is about to go ex-dividend in the next 4 days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date, which is the cut-off date for shareholders to be present on the company's books to be eligible for a dividend payment. 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. This means that investors who purchase Challenger's shares on or after the 30th of August will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 22nd of September.
The company's next dividend payment will be AU$0.10 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of AU$0.21 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Challenger stock has a trailing yield of around 3.1% on the current share price of A$6.73. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to investigate whether Challenger can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.
Check out our latest analysis for Challenger
Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. Challenger is paying out just 23% of its profit after tax, which is comfortably low and leaves plenty of breathing room in the case of adverse events.
Companies that pay out less in dividends than they earn in profits generally have more sustainable dividends. The lower the payout ratio, the more wiggle room the business has before it could be forced to cut the dividend.
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 decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at Challenger, with earnings per share up 8.6% on average over the last five years.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Challenger has delivered 2.4% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years. It's encouraging to see the company lifting dividends while earnings are growing, suggesting at least some corporate interest in rewarding shareholders.
Final Takeaway
Is Challenger an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? Challenger has seen its earnings per share grow slowly in recent years, and the company reinvests more than half of its profits in the business, which generally bodes well for its future prospects. We think this is a pretty attractive combination, and would be interested in investigating Challenger more closely.
While it's tempting to invest in Challenger for the dividends alone, you should always be mindful of the risks involved. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 4 warning signs for Challenger (of which 1 doesn't sit too well with us!) you should know about.
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. 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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