Yahoo Finance Russel Metals Inc. (TSE:RUS) Goes Ex-Dividend In 3 Days
Some investors rely on dividends for growing their wealth, and if you're one of those dividend sleuths, you might be intrigued to know that Russel Metals Inc. (TSE:RUS) is about to go ex-dividend in just 3 days. This means that investors who purchase shares on or after the 26th of August will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 16th of September.
Russel Metals's upcoming dividend is CA$0.38 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of CA$1.52 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Russel Metals stock has a trailing yield of around 7.4% on the current share price of CA$20.45. 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 Russel Metals has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.
See our latest analysis for Russel Metals
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. Russel Metals paid out more than half (53%) of its earnings last year, which is a regular payout ratio for most companies. 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. Russel Metals paid out more free cash flow than it generated - 120%, to be precise - last year, which we think is concerningly high. We're curious about why the company paid out more cash than it generated last year, since this can be one of the early signs that a dividend may be unsustainable.
Russel Metals 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 Russel Metals 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?
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 business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. Fortunately for readers, Russel Metals's earnings per share have been growing at 16% 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. Russel Metals's dividend payments per share have declined at 1.7% per year on average over the past 10 years, which is uninspiring.
The Bottom Line
Is Russel Metals 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 120% of its cashflow, which is uncomfortably high. It might be worth researching if the company is reinvesting in growth projects that could grow earnings and dividends in the future, but for now we're not all that optimistic on its dividend prospects.
Curious what other investors think of Russel Metals? See what analysts are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow .
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.
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.
