Only Three Days Left To Cash In On BASSAC Société anonyme's (EPA:BASS) Dividend

Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see BASSAC Société anonyme (EPA:BASS) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 3 days. The ex-dividend date is usually set to be two business days before the record date, which is the cut-off date on which you must be present on the company's books as a shareholder in order to receive the dividend. The ex-dividend date is of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade can take two business days or more to settle. Meaning, you will need to purchase BASSAC Société anonyme's shares before the 22nd of May to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 26th of May.

The company's next dividend payment will be €1.00 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed €1.00 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, BASSAC Société anonyme has a trailing yield of approximately 1.7% on its current stock price of €60.00. 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! We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

We've discovered 1 warning sign about BASSAC Société anonyme. View them for free.

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. BASSAC Société anonyme has a low and conservative payout ratio of just 20% of its income after tax. 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. Thankfully its dividend payments took up just 34% of the free cash flow it generated, which is a comfortable payout ratio.

It's positive to see that BASSAC Société anonyme's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

Check out our latest analysis for BASSAC Société anonyme

Click here to see how much of its profit BASSAC Société anonyme paid out over the last 12 months.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

When earnings decline, dividend companies become much harder to analyse and own safely. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. That's why it's not ideal to see BASSAC Société anonyme's earnings per share have been shrinking at 2.1% a year over the previous five years.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. BASSAC Société anonyme has delivered 5.2% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years.

Final Takeaway

Has BASSAC Société anonyme got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? BASSAC Société anonyme has comfortably low cash and profit payout ratios, which may mean the dividend is sustainable even in the face of a sharp decline in earnings per share. Still, we consider declining earnings to be a warning sign. To summarise, BASSAC Société anonyme looks okay on this analysis, although it doesn't appear a stand-out opportunity.

On that note, you'll want to research what risks BASSAC Société anonyme is facing. Case in point: We've spotted 1 warning sign for BASSAC Société anonyme you should be aware of.

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.