K-Bro Linen's (TSE:KBL) Dividend Will Be CA$0.10

The board of K-Bro Linen Inc. (TSE:KBL) has announced that it will pay a dividend of CA$0.10 per share on the 15th of September. This makes the dividend yield 3.5%, which will augment investor returns quite nicely.

See our latest analysis for K-Bro Linen

K-Bro Linen's Dividend Is Well Covered By Earnings

While it is great to have a strong dividend yield, we should also consider whether the payment is sustainable. Prior to this announcement, the company was paying out 136% of what it was earning. This situation certainly isn't ideal, and could place significant strain on the balance sheet if it continues.

Looking forward, earnings per share is forecast to rise exponentially over the next year. If the dividend continues along recent trends, we estimate the payout ratio will be 36%, which would make us comfortable with the dividend's sustainability, despite the levels currently being elevated.

K-Bro Linen Has A Solid Track Record

The company has a sustained record of paying dividends with very little fluctuation. The annual payment during the last 10 years was CA$1.15 in 2013, and the most recent fiscal year payment was CA$1.20. Its dividends have grown at less than 1% per annum over this time frame. Although we can't deny that the dividend has been remarkably stable in the past, the growth has been pretty muted.

K-Bro Linen's Dividend Might Lack Growth

Investors who have held shares in the company for the past few years will be happy with the dividend income they have received. We are encouraged to see that K-Bro Linen has grown earnings per share at 11% per year over the past five years. However, the company isn't reinvesting a lot back into the business, so we would expect the growth rate to slow down somewhat in the future.

The Dividend Could Prove To Be Unreliable

Overall, we don't think this company makes a great dividend stock, even though the dividend wasn't cut this year. In the past the payments have been stable, but we think the company is paying out too much for this to continue for the long term. Overall, we don't think this company has the makings of a good income stock.

Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 1 warning sign for K-Bro Linen that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Is K-Bro Linen not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top dividend stocks.

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