LCNB Corp. (NASDAQ:LCNB) Goes Ex-Dividend Soon

LCNB Corp. (NASDAQ:LCNB) stock is about to trade ex-dividend in four days. Typically, the ex-dividend date is one business day before the record date, which is the date on which a company determines the shareholders eligible to receive a dividend. The ex-dividend date is important because any transaction on a stock needs to have been settled before the record date in order to be eligible for a dividend. Meaning, you will need to purchase LCNB's shares before the 2nd of September to receive the dividend, which will be paid on the 16th of September.

The company's next dividend payment will be US$0.22 per share, on the back of last year when the company paid a total of US$0.88 to shareholders. Looking at the last 12 months of distributions, LCNB has a trailing yield of approximately 5.5% on its current stock price of US$16.02. 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 LCNB can afford its dividend, and if the dividend could grow.

We've found 21 US stocks that are forecast to pay a dividend yield of over 6% next year. See the full list for free.

If a company pays out more in dividends than it earned, then the dividend might become unsustainable - hardly an ideal situation. LCNB paid out more than half (59%) of its earnings last year, which is a regular payout ratio for most companies.

Companies that pay out less in dividends than they earn in profits generally have more sustainable dividends. The lower the payout ratio, the more wiggle room the business has before it could be forced to cut the dividend.

See our latest analysis for LCNB

Click here to see the company's payout ratio, plus analyst estimates of its future dividends.

Have Earnings And Dividends Been Growing?

Stocks with flat earnings can still be attractive dividend payers, but it is important to be more conservative with your approach and demand a greater margin for safety when it comes to dividend sustainability. 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 not enthused to see that LCNB's earnings per share have remained effectively flat 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.

The main way most investors will assess a company's dividend prospects is by checking the historical rate of dividend growth. LCNB has delivered 3.2% dividend growth per year on average over the past 10 years.

To Sum It Up

Is LCNB worth buying for its dividend? LCNB's earnings are effectively flat over recent years, even as the company pays out more than half of its earnings to shareholders as dividends. We think there are likely better opportunities out there.

Ever wonder what the future holds for LCNB? See what the two 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.

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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.