Votum S.A. (WSE:VOT) Passed Our Checks, And It's About To Pay A zł3.33 Dividend

It looks like Votum S.A. (WSE:VOT) is about to go ex-dividend in the next 3 days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is two business days before the record date, which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is an important date to be aware of as any purchase of the stock made on or after this date might mean a late settlement that doesn't show on the record date. Thus, you can purchase Votum's shares before the 29th of May in order to receive the dividend, which the company will pay on the 6th of June.

The company's next dividend payment will be zł3.33 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed zł2.42 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Votum has a trailing yield of 5.3% on the current share price of zł46.05. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

We've discovered 1 warning sign about Votum. 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. Fortunately Votum's payout ratio is modest, at just 29% of profit.

When a company paid out less in dividends than it earned in profit, this generally suggests its dividend is affordable. The lower the % of its profit that it pays out, the greater the margin of safety for the dividend if the business enters a downturn.

Check out our latest analysis for Votum

Click here to see how much of its profit Votum 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. Investors love dividends, so if earnings fall and the dividend is reduced, expect a stock to be sold off heavily at the same time. That's why it's comforting to see Votum's earnings have been skyrocketing, up 51% 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. In the last 10 years, Votum has lifted its dividend by approximately 17% a year on average. Both per-share earnings and dividends have both been growing rapidly in recent times, which is great to see.

Final Takeaway

Has Votum got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Companies like Votum 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. Votum 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 Votum looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. For example, we've found 1 warning sign for Votum that we recommend you consider before investing in the business.

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.