Yahoo Finance Be Sure To Check Out S&T Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:STBA) Before It Goes Ex-Dividend
S&T Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ:STBA) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. 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. Therefore, if you purchase S&T Bancorp's shares on or after the 4th of May, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 19th of May.
The company's upcoming dividend is US$0.30 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of US$1.20 per share to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, S&T Bancorp has a trailing yield of 4.1% on the current stock price of $29. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether S&T Bancorp's dividend is reliable and sustainable. As a result, readers should always check whether S&T Bancorp has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.
See our latest analysis for S&T Bancorp
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. Fortunately S&T Bancorp's payout ratio is modest, at just 42% of profit.
When a company paid out less in dividends than it earned in profit, this generally suggests its dividend is affordable. The lower the % of its profit that it pays out, the greater the margin of safety for the dividend if the business enters a downturn.
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. 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 S&T Bancorp, with earnings per share up 5.8% on average 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. S&T Bancorp has delivered an average of 7.2% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments. It's encouraging to see the company lifting dividends while earnings are growing, suggesting at least some corporate interest in rewarding shareholders.
Final Takeaway
Should investors buy S&T Bancorp 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. S&T Bancorp 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.
Wondering what the future holds for S&T Bancorp? See what the five analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow
If you're in the market for strong dividend payers, we recommend checking our selection of top dividend stocks.
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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.
