Only 4 Days Left To Cash In On Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) Dividend
Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE:WMS) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. Investors can purchase shares before the 29th of August in order to be eligible for this dividend, which will be paid on the 13th of September.
Advanced Drainage Systems's next dividend payment will be US$0.09 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$0.36 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, Advanced Drainage Systems has a trailing yield of approximately 1.2% on its current stock price of $31.22. Dividends are a major contributor to investment returns for long term holders, but only if the dividend continues to be paid. So we need to investigate whether Advanced Drainage Systems can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.
See our latest analysis for Advanced Drainage Systems
If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. Advanced Drainage Systems lost money last year, so the fact that it's paying a dividend is certainly disconcerting. There might be a good reason for this, but we'd want to look into it further before getting comfortable. Given that the company reported a loss last year, we now need to see if it generated enough free cash flow to fund the dividend. If cash earnings don't cover the dividend, the company would have to pay dividends out of cash in the bank, or by borrowing money, neither of which is long-term sustainable. It paid out more than half (57%) of its free cash flow in the past year, which is within an average range for most companies.
Click here to see how much of its profit Advanced Drainage Systems paid out over the last 12 months.
Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?
Companies with consistently growing earnings per share generally make the best dividend stocks, as they usually find it easier to grow dividends per share. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. Advanced Drainage Systems reported a loss last year, but at least the general trend suggests its income has been improving over the past five years. Even so, an unprofitable company whose business does not quickly recover is usually not a good candidate for dividend investors.
The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. In the past 5 years, Advanced Drainage Systems has increased its dividend at approximately 18% a year on average. It's great to see earnings per share growing rapidly over several years, and dividends per share growing right along with it.
Get our latest analysis on Advanced Drainage Systems's balance sheet health here.
To Sum It Up
From a dividend perspective, should investors buy or avoid Advanced Drainage Systems? It's hard to get used to Advanced Drainage Systems paying a dividend despite reporting a loss over the past year. At least the dividend was covered by free cash flow, however. It might be worth researching if the company is reinvesting in growth projects that could grow earnings and dividends in the future, but for now we're not all that optimistic on its dividend prospects.
Curious about whether Advanced Drainage Systems has been able to consistently generate growth? Here's a chart of its historical revenue and earnings growth.
A common investment mistake is buying the first interesting stock you see. Here you can find a list of promising dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.
We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.
If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. 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. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.
