International Paper's (NYSE:IP) Dividend Will Be $0.4625
International Paper Company's (NYSE:IP) investors are due to receive a payment of $0.4625 per share on 15th of March. The dividend yield will be 4.9% based on this payment which is still above the industry average.
View our latest analysis for International Paper
International Paper's Earnings Easily Cover The Distributions
A big dividend yield for a few years doesn't mean much if it can't be sustained. But before making this announcement, International Paper's earnings quite easily covered the dividend. The business is earning enough to make the dividend feasible, but the cash payout ratio of 93% shows that most of the cash is going back to the shareholders, which could constrain growth prospects going forward.
EPS is set to fall by 18.5% over the next 12 months. Assuming the dividend continues along recent trends, we believe the payout ratio could be 43%, which we are pretty comfortable with and we think is feasible on an earnings basis.
International Paper Has A Solid Track Record
Even over a long history of paying dividends, the company's distributions have been remarkably stable. The dividend has gone from an annual total of $1.05 in 2013 to the most recent total annual payment of $1.85. This implies that the company grew its distributions at a yearly rate of about 5.8% over that duration. Companies like this can be very valuable over the long term, if the decent rate of growth can be maintained.
The Dividend Looks Likely To Grow
Investors who have held shares in the company for the past few years will be happy with the dividend income they have received. International Paper has impressed us by growing EPS at 24% per year over the past five years. A low payout ratio gives the company a lot of flexibility, and growing earnings also make it very easy for it to grow the dividend.
In Summary
Overall, we think International Paper is a solid choice as a dividend stock, even though the dividend wasn't raised this year. The payments look okay by most measures, the lack of cash flow could definitely cause problems for them in the future. Taking all of this into consideration, the dividend looks viable moving forward, but investors should be mindful that the company has pushed the boundaries of sustainability in the past and may do so again.
Investors generally tend to favour companies with a consistent, stable dividend policy as opposed to those operating an irregular one. Still, investors need to consider a host of other factors, apart from dividend payments, when analysing a company. For example, we've identified 4 warning signs for International Paper (1 is concerning!) that you should be aware of before investing. Is International Paper not quite the opportunity you were looking for? Why not check out our selection of top 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.
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