Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) Passed Our Checks, And It's About To Pay A US$0.30 Dividend

Readers hoping to buy Barrett Business Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBSI) for its dividend will need to make their move shortly, as the stock is about to trade ex-dividend. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day 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 of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade takes at least two business day to settle. Therefore, if you purchase Barrett Business Services' shares on or after the 19th of August, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 3rd of September.

The company's upcoming dividend is US$0.30 a share, following on from the last 12 months, when the company distributed a total of US$1.20 per share to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Barrett Business Services has a trailing yield of approximately 1.5% on its current stock price of $78.39. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. As a result, readers should always check whether Barrett Business Services has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.

View our latest analysis for Barrett Business Services

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. Barrett Business Services paid out just 24% of its profit last year, which we think is conservatively low and leaves plenty of margin for unexpected circumstances. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. What's good is that dividends were well covered by free cash flow, with the company paying out 11% of its cash flow last year.

It's positive to see that Barrett Business Services'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.

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. This is why it's a relief to see Barrett Business Services earnings per share are up 7.2% per annum over the last five years. Earnings per share have been growing at a decent rate, and the company is retaining more than three-quarters of its earnings in the business. If profits are reinvested effectively, this could be a bullish combination for future earnings and dividends.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. In the past 10 years, Barrett Business Services has increased its dividend at approximately 13% a year on average. We're glad to see dividends rising alongside earnings over a number of years, which may be a sign the company intends to share the growth with shareholders.

The Bottom Line

Should investors buy Barrett Business Services for the upcoming dividend? Earnings per share growth has been growing somewhat, and Barrett Business Services is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow as dividends. This is interesting for a few reasons, as it suggests management may be reinvesting heavily in the business, but it also provides room to increase the dividend in time. It might be nice to see earnings growing faster, but Barrett Business Services is being conservative with its dividend payouts and could still perform reasonably over the long run. There's a lot to like about Barrett Business Services, and we would prioritise taking a closer look at it.

Wondering what the future holds for Barrett Business Services? See what the four analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow

A common investment mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a list of promising dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

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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.
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