Cohen & Steers, Inc. (NYSE:CNS) Goes Ex-Dividend Soon
Cohen & Steers, Inc. (NYSE:CNS) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next three days. The ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date, which is the cut-off date for shareholders to be present on the company's books to be eligible for a dividend payment. The ex-dividend date is of consequence because whenever a stock is bought or sold, the trade takes at least two business day to settle. Meaning, you will need to purchase Cohen & Steers' shares before the 1st of March to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 14th of March.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.59 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$2.28 to shareholders. Calculating the last year's worth of payments shows that Cohen & Steers has a trailing yield of 3.2% on the current share price of US$71.79. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Cohen & Steers's dividend is reliable and sustainable. So we need to check whether the dividend payments are covered, and if earnings are growing.
See our latest analysis for Cohen & Steers
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. It paid out 87% of its earnings as dividends last year, which is not unreasonable, but limits reinvestment in the business and leaves the dividend vulnerable to a business downturn. It could become a concern if earnings started to decline.
Generally speaking, the lower a company's payout ratios, the more resilient its dividend usually is.
Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Companies that aren't growing their earnings can still be valuable, but it is even more important to assess the sustainability of the dividend if it looks like the company will struggle to grow. If earnings decline and the company is forced to cut its dividend, investors could watch the value of their investment go up in smoke. That explains why we're not overly excited about Cohen & Steers's flat earnings over the past five years. We'd take that over an earnings decline any day, but in the long run, the best dividend stocks all grow their earnings per share.
Another key way to measure a company's dividend prospects is by measuring its historical rate of dividend growth. Cohen & Steers's dividend payments are broadly unchanged compared to where they were 10 years ago.
The Bottom Line
Has Cohen & Steers got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Cohen & Steers has been struggling to generate growth while also paying out more than half of its earnings to shareholders as dividends. At best we would put it on a watch-list to see if business conditions improve, as it doesn't look like a clear opportunity right now.
However if you're still interested in Cohen & Steers as a potential investment, you should definitely consider some of the risks involved with Cohen & Steers. To help with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Cohen & Steers that you should be aware of before investing in their shares.
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.
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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.
