Do These 3 Checks Before Buying Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) For Its Upcoming Dividend

Evergy, Inc. (NYSE:EVRG) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next two days. You will need to purchase shares before the 5th of March to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 22nd of March.

Evergy's next dividend payment will be US$0.54 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$2.14 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Evergy has a trailing yield of 4.0% on the current share price of $53.96. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! We need to see whether the dividend is covered by earnings and if it's growing.

See our latest analysis for Evergy

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Its dividend payout ratio is 75% of profit, which means the company is paying out a majority of its earnings. The relatively limited profit reinvestment could slow the rate of future earnings growth. It could become a concern if earnings started to decline. Yet cash flows are even more important than profits for assessing a dividend, so we need to see if the company generated enough cash to pay its distribution. Over the last year, it paid out dividends equivalent to 240% of what it generated in free cash flow, a disturbingly high percentage. Our definition of free cash flow excludes cash generated from asset sales, so since Evergy is paying out such a high percentage of its cash flow, it might be worth seeing if it sold assets or had similar events that might have led to such a high dividend payment.

Evergy paid out less in dividends than it reported in profits, but unfortunately it didn't generate enough cash to cover the dividend. Were this to happen repeatedly, this would be a risk to Evergy's ability to maintain its dividend.

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

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Stocks in companies that generate sustainable earnings growth often make the best dividend prospects, as it is easier to lift the dividend when earnings are rising. If earnings fall far enough, the company could be forced to cut its dividend. This is why it's a relief to see Evergy earnings per share are up 5.2% per annum over the last five years. Earnings have been growing at a steady rate, but we're concerned dividend payments consumed most of the company's cash flow over the past year.

Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Evergy has delivered 5.6% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years. 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 Evergy for the upcoming dividend? Earnings per share have grown somewhat, although Evergy paid out over half its profits and the dividend was not well covered by free cash flow. It's not that we think Evergy is a bad company, but these characteristics don't generally lead to outstanding dividend performance.

Although, if you're still interested in Evergy and want to know more, you'll find it very useful to know what risks this stock faces. Every company has risks, and we've spotted 1 warning sign for Evergy you should know about.

We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting 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. 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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