Why You Might Be Interested In VIEL & Cie, société anonyme (EPA:VIL) For Its Upcoming Dividend

VIEL & Cie, société anonyme (EPA:VIL) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. The ex-dividend date is commonly two business days before the record date, which is the cut-off date for shareholders to be present on the company's books to be eligible for a dividend payment. The ex-dividend date is important because any transaction on a stock needs to have been settled before the record date in order to be eligible for a dividend. This means that investors who purchase VIEL & Cie société anonyme's shares on or after the 16th of June will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 18th of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be €0.47 per share, and in the last 12 months, the company paid a total of €0.47 per share. Based on the last year's worth of payments, VIEL & Cie société anonyme stock has a trailing yield of around 2.9% on the current share price of €16.15. 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! That's why we should always check whether the dividend payments appear sustainable, and if the company is growing.

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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. VIEL & Cie société anonyme paid out just 24% 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.

Check out our latest analysis for VIEL & Cie société anonyme

Click here to see how much of its profit VIEL & Cie société anonyme paid out over the last 12 months.

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 decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. That's why it's comforting to see VIEL & Cie société anonyme's earnings have been skyrocketing, up 26% per annum for the past five years.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. VIEL & Cie société anonyme has delivered an average of 12% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.

The Bottom Line

Is VIEL & Cie société anonyme an attractive dividend stock, or better left on the shelf? Companies like VIEL & Cie société anonyme that are growing rapidly and paying out a low fraction of earnings, are usually reinvesting heavily in their business. This is one of the most attractive investment combinations under this analysis, as it can create substantial value for investors over the long run. VIEL & Cie société anonyme 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.

Want to learn more about VIEL & Cie société anonyme's dividend performance? Check out this visualisation of its historical revenue and earnings growth.

Generally, we wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here's a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.

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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.