Crawford (NYSE:CRD.B) Has Affirmed Its Dividend Of US$0.06

Crawford & Company (NYSE:CRD.B) has announced that it will pay a dividend of US$0.06 per share on the 11th of March. This makes the dividend yield 3.2%, which will augment investor returns quite nicely.

See our latest analysis for Crawford

Crawford's Dividend Is Well Covered By Earnings

If the payments aren't sustainable, a high yield for a few years won't matter that much. However, prior to this announcement, Crawford's dividend was comfortably covered by both cash flow and earnings. As a result, a large proportion of what it earned was being reinvested back into the business.

Over the next year, EPS is forecast to expand by 15.2%. If the dividend continues on this path, the payout ratio could be 28% by next year, which we think can be pretty sustainable going forward.

Dividend Volatility

Although the company has a long dividend history, it has been cut at least once in the last 10 years. Since 2012, the dividend has gone from US$0.08 to US$0.24. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 12% over that duration. Crawford has grown distributions at a rapid rate despite cutting the dividend at least once in the past. Companies that cut once often cut again, so we would be cautious about buying this stock solely for the dividend income.

We Could See Crawford's Dividend Growing

With a relatively unstable dividend, it's even more important to evaluate if earnings per share is growing, which could point to a growing dividend in the future. It's encouraging to see Crawford has been growing its earnings per share at 8.8% a year over the past five years. Crawford definitely has the potential to grow its dividend in the future with earnings on an uptrend and a low payout ratio.

We Really Like Crawford's Dividend

Overall, we think that this is a great income investment, and we think that maintaining the dividend this year may have been a conservative choice. Distributions are quite easily covered by earnings, which are also being converted to cash flows. All of these factors considered, we think this has solid potential as a dividend stock.

Market movements attest to how highly valued a consistent dividend policy is compared to one which is more unpredictable. Meanwhile, despite the importance of dividend payments, they are not the only factors our readers should know when assessing a company. As an example, we've identified 2 warning signs for Crawford that you should be aware of before investing. 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.