Four Days Left Until Industrie Chimiche Forestali S.p.A. (BIT:ICF) Trades Ex-Dividend

Industrie Chimiche Forestali S.p.A. (BIT:ICF) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before a company's record date, which is the date on which the company determines which shareholders are entitled to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. In other words, investors can purchase Industrie Chimiche Forestali's shares before the 8th of May in order to be eligible for the dividend, which will be paid on the 10th of May.

The company's next dividend payment will be €0.20 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of €0.20 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Industrie Chimiche Forestali has a trailing yield of 3.4% on the current share price of €5.95. 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.

Check out our latest analysis for Industrie Chimiche Forestali

Dividends are typically paid from company earnings. If a company pays more in dividends than it earned in profit, then the dividend could be unsustainable. Industrie Chimiche Forestali paid out a comfortable 42% of its profit last year.

Click here to see how much of its profit Industrie Chimiche Forestali paid out over the last 12 months.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Businesses with shrinking earnings are tricky from a dividend perspective. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. Readers will understand then, why we're concerned to see Industrie Chimiche Forestali's earnings per share have dropped 7.1% a year over the past three years. Ultimately, when earnings per share decline, the size of the pie from which dividends can be paid, shrinks.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. In the past two years, Industrie Chimiche Forestali has increased its dividend at approximately 20% a year on average.

To Sum It Up

From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Industrie Chimiche Forestali? Industrie Chimiche Forestali's earnings per share are down over the past three years, although it has the cushion of a low payout ratio, which would suggest a cut to the dividend is relatively unlikely. Industrie Chimiche Forestali 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.

So while Industrie Chimiche Forestali looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 2 warning signs for Industrie Chimiche Forestali you should know about.

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.