Yahoo Finance Should Income Investors Look At Genesis Energy Limited (NZSE:GNE) Before Its Ex-Dividend?
Genesis Energy Limited (NZSE:GNE) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. The ex-dividend date occurs one day before the record date which is the day on which shareholders need to be on the company's books in order to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is an important date to be aware of as any purchase of the stock made on or after this date might mean a late settlement that doesn't show on the record date. Thus, you can purchase Genesis Energy's shares before the 22nd of September in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 7th of October.
The company's upcoming dividend is NZ$0.10 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of NZ$0.18 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Genesis Energy stock has a trailing yield of around 5.8% on the current share price of NZ$3.02. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. So we need to check whether the dividend payments are covered, and if earnings are growing.
See our latest analysis for Genesis Energy
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. Its dividend payout ratio is 83% of profit, which means the company is paying out a majority of its earnings. The relatively limited profit reinvestment could slow the rate of future earnings growth. It could become a concern if earnings started to decline. A useful secondary check can be to evaluate whether Genesis Energy generated enough free cash flow to afford its dividend. The company paid out 93% of its free cash flow over the last year, which we think is outside the ideal range for most businesses. Cash flows are usually much more volatile than earnings, so this could be a temporary effect - but we'd generally want to look more closely here.
Genesis Energy paid out less in dividends than it reported in profits, but unfortunately it didn't generate enough cash to cover the dividend. Cash is king, as they say, and were Genesis Energy to repeatedly pay dividends that aren't well covered by cashflow, we would consider this a warning sign.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. Fortunately for readers, Genesis Energy's earnings per share have been growing at 12% a year for the past five years. Earnings have been growing at a decent rate, but we're concerned dividend payments consumed most of the company's cash flow over the past year.
Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Since the start of our data, eight years ago, Genesis Energy has lifted its dividend by approximately 3.7% a year on average. It's good to see both earnings and the dividend have improved - although the former has been rising much quicker than the latter, possibly due to the company reinvesting more of its profits in growth.
Final Takeaway
Is Genesis Energy worth buying for its dividend? It's good to see that earnings per share are growing and that the company's payout ratio is within a normal range for most businesses. However we're somewhat concerned that it paid out 93% of its cashflow, which is uncomfortably high. In summary, while it has some positive characteristics, we're not inclined to race out and buy Genesis Energy today.
If you're not too concerned about Genesis Energy's ability to pay dividends, you should still be mindful of some of the other risks that this business faces. Our analysis shows 3 warning signs for Genesis Energy that we strongly recommend you have a look at before investing in the company.
If you're in the market for strong dividend payers, we recommend checking our selection of top dividend stocks.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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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