Yahoo Finance Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) Passed Our Checks, And It's About To Pay A 0.4% Dividend
Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see Expedia Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXPE) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 3 days. You will need to purchase shares before the 18th of November to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 12th of December.
Expedia Group's upcoming dividend is US$0.34 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of US$1.36 per share to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Expedia Group has a trailing yield of 1.4% on the current share price of $95.6. 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! As a result, readers should always check whether Expedia Group has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.
Check out our latest analysis for Expedia Group
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Expedia Group paid out a comfortable 38% of its profit last year. 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. Luckily it paid out just 16% of its free cash flow last 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?
Stocks in companies that generate sustainable earnings growth often make the best dividend prospects, as it is easier to lift the dividend when earnings are rising. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. For this reason, we're glad to see Expedia Group's earnings per share have risen 15% per annum over the last five years. Earnings per share have been growing rapidly and the company is retaining a majority of its earnings within the business. This will make it easier to fund future growth efforts and we think this is an attractive combination - plus the dividend can always be increased later.
Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Expedia Group has delivered an average of 9.3% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past ten 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.
The Bottom Line
Should investors buy Expedia Group for the upcoming dividend? Expedia Group has grown its earnings per share while simultaneously reinvesting in the business. Unfortunately it's cut the dividend at least once in the past ten years, but the conservative payout ratio makes the current dividend look sustainable. It's a promising combination that should mark this company worthy of closer attention.
Ever wonder what the future holds for Expedia Group? See what the 29 analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow
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.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
