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Bank7 Corp. (NASDAQ:BSVN) Passed Our Checks, And It's About To Pay A US$0.21 Dividend
Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see Bank7 Corp. (NASDAQ:BSVN) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 3 days. The ex-dividend date occurs one day before the record date which is the day on which shareholders need to be on the company's books in order to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important as the process of settlement involves two full business days. So if you miss that date, you would not show up on the company's books on the record date. Therefore, if you purchase Bank7's shares on or after the 25th of September, you won't be eligible to receive the dividend, when it is paid on the 10th of October.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.21 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$0.64 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Bank7 has a trailing yield of approximately 3.5% on its current stock price of $24.1. Dividends are an important source of income to many shareholders, but the health of the business is crucial to maintaining those dividends. So we need to investigate whether Bank7 can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.
See our latest analysis for Bank7
Dividends are usually paid out of company profits, so if a company pays out more than it earned then its dividend is usually at greater risk of being cut. Bank7 has a low and conservative payout ratio of just 15% of its income after tax.
When a company paid out less in dividends than it earned in profit, this generally suggests its dividend is affordable. The lower the % of its profit that it pays out, the greater the margin of safety for the dividend if the business enters a downturn.
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 decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. With that in mind, we're encouraged by the steady growth at Bank7, with earnings per share up 3.7% on average over the last five years.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. Bank7 has delivered 20% dividend growth per year on average over the past four years. It's encouraging to see the company lifting dividends while earnings are growing, suggesting at least some corporate interest in rewarding shareholders.
To Sum It Up
From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Bank7? Bank7 has seen its earnings per share grow slowly in recent years, and the company reinvests more than half of its profits in the business, which generally bodes well for its future prospects. Overall, Bank7 looks like a promising dividend stock in this analysis, and we think it would be worth investigating further.
With that in mind, a critical part of thorough stock research is being aware of any risks that stock currently faces. For example, Bank7 has 3 warning signs (and 1 which can't be ignored) we think you should know about.
Generally, we wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see. Here's a curated list of interesting stocks that are strong dividend payers.
Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.
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.
