Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) Passed Our Checks, And It's About To Pay A US$0.38 Dividend
Peoples Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ:PEBO) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next four 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 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. This means that investors who purchase Peoples Bancorp's shares on or after the 4th of November will not receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 21st of November.
The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.38 per share. Last year, in total, the company distributed US$1.52 to shareholders. Last year's total dividend payments show that Peoples Bancorp has a trailing yield of 5.1% on the current share price of $30.05. If you buy this business for its dividend, you should have an idea of whether Peoples Bancorp's dividend is reliable and sustainable. As a result, readers should always check whether Peoples Bancorp has been able to grow its dividends, or if the dividend might be cut.
Check out our latest analysis for Peoples Bancorp
Dividends are typically paid out of company income, so if a company pays out more than it earned, its dividend is usually at a higher risk of being cut. Fortunately Peoples Bancorp's payout ratio is modest, at just 41% of profit.
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?
Businesses with strong growth prospects usually make the best dividend payers, because it's easier to grow dividends when earnings per share are improving. If business enters a downturn and the dividend is cut, the company could see its value fall precipitously. For this reason, we're glad to see Peoples Bancorp's earnings per share have risen 16% per annum 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. In the past 10 years, Peoples Bancorp has increased its dividend at approximately 13% a year on average. Both per-share earnings and dividends have both been growing rapidly in recent times, which is great to see.
The Bottom Line
Should investors buy Peoples Bancorp for the upcoming dividend? Companies like Peoples Bancorp that are growing rapidly and paying out a low fraction of earnings, are usually reinvesting heavily in their business. This is one of the most attractive investment combinations under this analysis, as it can create substantial value for investors over the long run. Peoples Bancorp ticks a lot of boxes for us from a dividend perspective, and we think these characteristics should mark the company as deserving of further attention.
Ever wonder what the future holds for Peoples Bancorp? See what the four analysts we track are forecasting, with this visualisation of its historical and future estimated earnings and cash flow
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.
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