WSFS Financial (NASDAQ:WSFS) Has Announced A Dividend Of $0.15

The board of WSFS Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:WSFS) has announced that it will pay a dividend of $0.15 per share on the 24th of May. The dividend yield is 1.4% based on this payment, which is a little bit low compared to the other companies in the industry.

Check out our latest analysis for WSFS Financial

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

Even a low dividend yield can be attractive if it is sustained for years on end.

Having distributed dividends for at least 10 years, WSFS Financial has a long history of paying out a part of its earnings to shareholders. Using data from its latest earnings report, WSFS Financial's payout ratio sits at 13%, an extremely comfortable number that shows that it can pay its dividend.

EPS is set to fall by 1.8% over the next 12 months. But assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the future payout ratio could be 15%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think would be feasible on an earnings basis.

WSFS Financial Has A Solid Track Record

The company has an extended history of paying stable dividends. Since 2014, the dividend has gone from $0.16 total annually to $0.60. This works out to be a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 14% a year over that time. Rapidly growing dividends for a long time is a very valuable feature for an income stock.

We Could See WSFS Financial's Dividend Growing

Some investors will be chomping at the bit to buy some of the company's stock based on its dividend history. WSFS Financial has impressed us by growing EPS at 6.5% per year over the past five years. WSFS 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 WSFS Financial's Dividend

Overall, we like to see the dividend staying consistent, and we think WSFS Financial might even raise payments in the future. The company is generating plenty of cash, and the earnings also quite easily cover the distributions. However, it is worth noting that the earnings are expected to fall over the next year, which may not change the long term outlook, but could affect the dividend payment in the next 12 months. All of these factors considered, we think this has solid potential as a dividend stock.

It's important to note that companies having a consistent dividend policy will generate greater investor confidence than those having an erratic one. At the same time, there are other factors our readers should be conscious of before pouring capital into a stock. For example, we've picked out 1 warning sign for WSFS Financial that investors should know about before committing capital to this stock. If you are a dividend investor, you might also want to look at our curated list of high yield 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.