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There's A Lot To Like About Morgan Stanley's (NYSE:MS) Upcoming US$0.35 Dividend

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 Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) is about to go ex-dividend in just 4 days. You will need to purchase shares before the 29th of October to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 13th of November.

Morgan Stanley's next dividend payment will be US$0.35 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$1.40 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Morgan Stanley has a trailing yield of approximately 2.7% on its current stock price of $51.87. 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 investigate whether Morgan Stanley can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

Check out our latest analysis for Morgan Stanley

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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. Morgan Stanley paid out just 23% of its profit last year, which we think is conservatively low and leaves plenty of margin for unexpected circumstances.

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.

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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. It's encouraging to see Morgan Stanley has grown its earnings rapidly, up 30% a year for the past five years.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. In the past 10 years, Morgan Stanley has increased its dividend at approximately 21% a year on average. Both per-share earnings and dividends have both been growing rapidly in recent times, which is great to see.

To Sum It Up

Is Morgan Stanley worth buying for its dividend? Companies like Morgan Stanley that are growing rapidly and paying out a low fraction of earnings, are usually reinvesting heavily in their business. Perhaps even more importantly - this can sometimes signal management is focused on the long term future of the business. Morgan Stanley 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.

In light of that, while Morgan Stanley has an appealing dividend, it's worth knowing the risks involved with this stock. We've identified 3 warning signs with Morgan Stanley (at least 2 which can't be ignored), and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

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.

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. 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.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com.