Only 3 Days Left Before Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation (NASDAQ:BGFV) Will Start Trading Ex-Dividend, Is It Worth Buying?

Important news for shareholders and potential investors in Big 5 Sporting Goods Corporation (NASDAQ:BGFV): The dividend payment of $0.15 per share will be distributed into shareholder on 15 June 2018, and the stock will begin trading ex-dividend at an earlier date, 31 May 2018. What does this mean for current shareholders and potential investors? Below, I will explain how holding Big 5 Sporting Goods can impact your portfolio income stream, by analysing the stock's most recent financial data and dividend attributes. View our latest analysis for Big 5 Sporting Goods

5 checks you should do on a dividend stock

If you are a dividend investor, you should always assess these five key metrics:

• Is its annual yield among the top 25% of dividend-paying companies?
• Has its dividend been stable over the past (i.e. no missed payments or significant payout cuts)?
• Has dividend per share amount increased over the past?
• Is it able to pay the current rate of dividends from its earnings?
• Will it be able to continue to payout at the current rate in the future?

How does Big 5 Sporting Goods fare?

The current payout ratio for BGFV is negative, which means that it is loss-making, and paying its dividend from its retained earnings. 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. Whilst its per-share payments have increased during the past 10 years, there has been some hiccups. Shareholders would have seen a few years of reduced payments in this time. Relative to peers, Big 5 Sporting Goods generates a yield of 7.14%, which is high for Specialty Retail stocks.

Next Steps:

If Big 5 Sporting Goods is in your portfolio for cash-generating reasons, there may be better alternatives out there. But if you are not exclusively a dividend investor, the stock could still be an interesting investment opportunity. 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. Below, I've compiled three important factors you should further research:

1. Historical Performance: What has BGFV's returns been like over the past? Go into more detail in the past track record analysis and take a look at the free visual representations of our analysis for more clarity.
2. Management Team: An experienced management team on the helm increases our confidence in the business – take a look at who sits on Big 5 Sporting Goods’s board and the CEO’s back ground.
3. 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.