AmeriServ Financial's (NASDAQ:ASRV) Dividend Will Be $0.03

AmeriServ Financial, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:ASRV) investors are due to receive a payment of $0.03 per share on 21st of February. This means the dividend yield will be fairly typical at 3.0%.

View our latest analysis for AmeriServ Financial

AmeriServ Financial's Dividend Forecasted To Be Well Covered By Earnings

We like a dividend to be consistent over the long term, so checking whether it is sustainable is important.

Having distributed dividends for at least 10 years, AmeriServ Financial has a long history of paying out a part of its earnings to shareholders. Taking data from its last earnings report, calculating for the company's payout ratio shows 26%, which means that AmeriServ Financial would be able to pay its last dividend without pressure on the balance sheet.

If the trend of the last few years continues, EPS will grow by 19.6% over the next 12 months. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we think the future payout ratio could be 26% by next year, which is in a pretty sustainable range.

AmeriServ Financial Has A Solid Track Record

Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. The annual payment during the last 10 years was $0.04 in 2013, and the most recent fiscal year payment was $0.12. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 12% over that duration. So, dividends have been growing pretty quickly, and even more impressively, they haven't experienced any notable falls during this period.

The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow

The company's investors will be pleased to have been receiving dividend income for some time. We are encouraged to see that AmeriServ Financial has grown earnings per share at 20% per year over the past five years. AmeriServ Financial definitely has the potential to grow its dividend in the future with earnings on an uptrend and a low payout ratio.

We Really Like AmeriServ Financial's Dividend

In summary, it is good to see that the dividend is staying consistent, and we don't think there is any reason to suspect this might change over the medium term. Earnings are easily covering distributions, and the company is generating plenty of cash. Taking this all into consideration, this looks like it could be a good dividend opportunity.

It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. Taking the debate a bit further, we've identified 1 warning sign for AmeriServ Financial that investors need to be conscious of moving forward. Looking for more high-yielding dividend ideas? Try our collection of 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.