Is It Smart To Buy Utah Medical Products, Inc. (NASDAQ:UTMD) Before It Goes Ex-Dividend?

Regular readers will know that we love our dividends at Simply Wall St, which is why it's exciting to see Utah Medical Products, Inc. (NASDAQ:UTMD) is about to trade ex-dividend in the next 4 days. Investors can purchase shares before the 14th of September in order to be eligible for this dividend, which will be paid on the 5th of October.

Utah Medical Products's next dividend payment will be US$0.28 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$1.12 to shareholders. Based on the last year's worth of payments, Utah Medical Products has a trailing yield of 1.4% on the current stock price of $81.35. We love seeing companies pay a dividend, but it's also important to be sure that laying the golden eggs isn't going to kill our golden goose! So we need to investigate whether Utah Medical Products can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

See our latest analysis for Utah Medical Products

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. Fortunately Utah Medical Products's payout ratio is modest, at just 33% of profit. Yet cash flow is typically more important than profit for assessing dividend sustainability, so we should always check if the company generated enough cash to afford its dividend. Luckily it paid out just 20% of its free cash flow last year.

It's positive to see that Utah Medical Products's dividend is covered by both profits and cash flow, since this is generally a sign that the dividend is sustainable, and a lower payout ratio usually suggests a greater margin of safety before the dividend gets cut.

Click here to see how much of its profit Utah Medical Products paid out over the last 12 months.

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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 Utah Medical Products, with earnings per share up 2.2% on average over the last five years. Earnings per share growth in recent times has not been a standout. Yet there are several ways to grow the dividend, and one of them is simply that the company may choose to pay out more of its earnings as dividends.

Many investors will assess a company's dividend performance by evaluating how much the dividend payments have changed over time. Utah Medical Products has delivered an average of 1.8% per year annual increase in its dividend, based on the past 10 years of dividend payments.

To Sum It Up

Has Utah Medical Products got what it takes to maintain its dividend payments? Earnings per share have been growing moderately, and Utah Medical Products is paying out less than half its earnings and cash flow as dividends, which is an attractive combination as it suggests the company is investing in growth. We would prefer to see earnings growing faster, but the best dividend stocks over the long term typically combine significant earnings per share growth with a low payout ratio, and Utah Medical Products is halfway there. There's a lot to like about Utah Medical Products, and we would prioritise taking a closer look at it.

So while Utah Medical Products looks good from a dividend perspective, it's always worthwhile being up to date with the risks involved in this stock. To help with this, we've discovered 1 warning sign for Utah Medical Products that you should be aware of before investing in their shares.

We wouldn't recommend just buying the first dividend stock you see, though. Here's a list of interesting dividend stocks with a greater than 2% yield and an upcoming dividend.

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. 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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