Only 3 Days Left To Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY)’s Ex-Dividend Date, Should You Buy?

Shares of Sysco Corporation (NYSE:SYY) will begin trading ex-dividend in 3 days. To qualify for the dividend check of $0.36 per share, investors must have owned the shares prior to 05 April 2018, which is the last day the company's management will finalize their list of shareholders to which they will send dividend payments. Is this future income a persuasive enough catalyst for investors to think about Sysco as an investment today? Below, I'm going to look at the latest data and analyze the stock and its dividend property in further detail. Check out our latest analysis for Sysco

5 questions to ask before buying a dividend stock

When assessing a stock as a potential addition to my dividend Portfolio, I look at these five areas:

• Is its annual yield among the top 25% of dividend-paying companies?
• Does it consistently pay out dividends without missing a payment or significantly cutting payout?
• Has dividend per share risen in the past couple of years?
• Is its earnings sufficient to payout dividend at the current rate?
• Will it have the ability to keep paying its dividends going forward?

Does Sysco pass our checks?

Sysco has a trailing twelve-month payout ratio of 59.92%, meaning the dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. In the near future, analysts are predicting lower payout ratio of 39.85%, leading to a dividend yield of around 2.54%. However, EPS should increase to $3.06, meaning that the lower payout ratio does not necessarily implicate a lower dividend payment. Reliablity is an important factor for dividend stocks, particularly for income investors who want a strong track record of payment and a positive outlook for future payout. SYY has increased its DPS from $0.88 to $1.44 in the past 10 years. During this period it has not missed a payment, as one would expect for a company increasing its dividend. These are all positive signs of a great, reliable dividend stock. In terms of its peers, Sysco produces a yield of 2.40%, which is on the low-side for Consumer Retailing stocks.

Next Steps:

With these dividend metrics in mind, I definitely rank Sysco as a strong income stock, and is worth further research for anyone who considers dividends an important part of their portfolio strategy. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, you should always research extensively before deciding whether or not a stock is an appropriate investment for you. I always recommend analysing the company's fundamentals and underlying business before making an investment decision. There are three pertinent aspects you should look at:

1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for SYY’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for SYY’s outlook.
2. Valuation: What is SYY worth today? Even if the stock is a cash cow, it's not worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether SYY is currently mispriced by the market.
3. Other Dividend Rockstars: Are there better dividend payers with stronger fundamentals out there? Check out our free list of these great stocks here.

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Simply Wall St analyst Simply Wall St and Simply Wall St have no position in any of the companies mentioned. This article 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.